Sherrill's Inn · Photo: Bill Fitzpatrick · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Fairview as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fairview gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). Flood insurance has paid 12 claims here since 2013.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What Fairview faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Fairview’s grade
River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Fairview, and Fairview’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts. Landslides add 4%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
C+ higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Fairview’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $903K a year in losses across Fairview: $634K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Fairview flood? Sometimes: 12 flood claims since 2013
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Fairview, from FEMA’s records: 11.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 76% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Helene8 claims · $865K
- Tropical Storm Fred2 claims · $9K
Fairview isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Buncombe County.The storms Fairview remembers
None of the 16 disasters declared for Buncombe County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Fairview itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20248 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Storm Helene, declared for Buncombe County
- 20132 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, declared for Buncombe County
- 20212 flood claims paidThe year of Remnants of Tropical Storm Fred, declared for Buncombe County
Buncombe County has had 16 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Buncombe County, 2016–2016.
Old photos of Fairview after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Fairview archive →Get ready for what Fairview faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Fairview
Is Fairview at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fairview has higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Fairview flood?
Flood insurance has paid 12 claims in Fairview since 2013, $895K in all, or 11.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 76% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (8).
Is Fairview in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Buncombe County, 41% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Fairview?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Fairview’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Fairview?
By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 8 paid, $865K.
Is Fairview at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Fairview’s rate for it is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fairview.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Fairview’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.