Photo: Public domain, City of Fayetteville · Public domainFEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Fayetteville than in 52% of U.S. towns; 400 flood claims have been paid there
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fayetteville gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns, #137 of 290 in North Carolina. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (60%), then hurricanes (26%). Flood insurance has paid 400 claims here since 1978.
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 stands out about Fayetteville’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Fayetteville 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
Hurricanes
Tornadoes
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 Fayetteville’s grade
River and rain flooding is 60% of the building damage FEMA expects in Fayetteville, and Fayetteville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 26% (higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts).
B− #137 of 290 in North Carolina; lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Fayetteville’s residents live in 62 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical North Carolina town has lower expected damage than 51% of U.S. towns; within the state, Fayetteville has less expected damage per building than 53% of North Carolina towns.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Fayetteville has lower expected damage per building than 62% (#154 of 400). Because it is so big, its total expected yearly loss, $55.9M, is the 222th largest of those 400.
Does Fayetteville flood? Yes: 400 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Fayetteville, from FEMA’s records: 4.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 57% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Matthew181 claims · $10.0M
- Hurricane Florence87 claims · $1.7M
- The Mid-spring storms24 claims · $644K
Fayetteville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Cumberland County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Fayetteville
Disasters that paid out in Fayetteville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Fayetteville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Tropical Storm Helene101 households applied for aid$9K aid approved5 flood claims paid that year
- 2018Hurricane Florence8,524 households applied for aid$3.0M aid approved$10.1M to the City of Fayetteville for repairs87 flood claims paid for it, $1.7M
- 2016Hurricane Matthew11,389 households applied for aid$12.2M aid approved$10.0M to the City of Fayetteville for repairs181 flood claims paid for it, $10.0M
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding1,601 households applied for aid$1.1M aid approved$2.6M to the City of Fayetteville for repairs
- 2004Tropical Storm Frances323 households applied for aid$294K aid approved
- 2003Hurricane Isabel757 households applied for aid$326K aid approved10 flood claims paid that year
Show all 7
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$256K to the City of Fayetteville for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
Cumberland County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe 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 Cumberland County, 2011–2011.
Old photos of Fayetteville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Fayetteville archive →Fayetteville and its neighbors
Fayetteville is 2nd of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Lake | B−less damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Fayetteville | B−less damage than 52% | river and rain flooding | 400 |
| Rockfish | B−less damage than 50% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Vander | B−more damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Eastover | B−more damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Hope Mills | C+more damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Fayetteville 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.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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 Fayetteville
Is Fayetteville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fayetteville has lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #137 of 290 in North Carolina. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (60%) and hurricanes (26%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Fayetteville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 400 claims in Fayetteville since 1978, $14.7M in all, or 4.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 57% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 45 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Matthew (181).
Is Fayetteville 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 Cumberland County, 33% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Fayetteville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Fayetteville’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 Fayetteville?
By FEMA money that reached Fayetteville, Hurricane Matthew (2016): 11,389 households applied for aid, $12.2M approved, and $10.0M to the City of Fayetteville for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Matthew: 181 paid, $10.0M.
Is Fayetteville at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (60%), and Fayetteville’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fayetteville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Fayetteville’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.