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Palmer Fire SchoolPalmer Fire School · Photo: North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources · Public domain
DHazard risk
Natural hazards in Lake Lure · FEMA

FEMA puts Lake Lure’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 85% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lake Lure gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). Flood insurance has paid 10 claims here since 2018.

River and rain flooding 90%Tornadoes 3%Ice storms 2%

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

more than 85%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D
in North Carolina · higher than 85% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
90% of expected building damage
Flood claims
10
paid since 2018 · $543K
Disasters paid out here
3
of 17 declared for Rutherford County

What stands out about Lake Lure’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Landslides: the top 1% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for landslides here ranks in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts; it is 0.5% of the damage it expects.Moved out of harm’s way5 flood-prone properties bought out and cleared; 1 home raised above flood level with FEMA grants.
By hazard

What Lake Lure 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

90%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Ice storms top 4% Earthquakes Hurricanes Hail Strong wind Landslides top 1% Wildfire Lightning Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Lake Lure’s grade

River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lake Lure, and Lake Lure’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 2%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Lake Lure sits
Lake Lure
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Lake Lure’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding90%Tornadoes3%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.4M a year in losses across Lake Lure: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Tropical Storm Helene in 2024, FEMA took 962 aid registrations from Lake Lure addresses (the town has 2,425 homes) and flood insurance paid 8 claims for $515K.
A small-area figure. Lake Lure covers 2 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Lake Lure flood? Sometimes: 10 flood claims since 2018

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lake Lure, from FEMA’s records: 4.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2018: 2 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 8 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims20182024
20182026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Helene8 claims · $515K
  • Hurricane Florence1 claim · $23K
10
paid claims since 2018
$543K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$54K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Lake Lure isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Rutherford County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
5flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
1home raised above flood level
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Lake Lure

Disasters that paid out in Lake Lure itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Lake Lure), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2024Tropical Storm Helene962 households applied for aid$3.5M aid approved$18.0M to the Town of Lake Lure for repairs8 flood claims paid for it, $515K
  2. 2004Hurricane Ivan5 households applied for aid$5K aid approved$357K to the Town of Lake Lure for repairs
  3. 2004Tropical Storm Frances13 households applied for aid$32K aid approved$36K to the Town of Lake Lure for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Lake LureRutherford County only

Rutherford County has had 17 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 Rutherford County, 2016–2016.

Were you here?

Old photos of Lake Lure after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Lake Lure archive →
Next door

Lake Lure and its neighbors

Lake Lure has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Chimney Rock Village: not gradedChimney Rock VillageLake Lure
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Lake LureDmore damage than 85%river and rain flooding10
Chimney Rock Village—122 residents; we grade 1,000+

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Lake Lure faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Lake Lure

Is Lake Lure at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lake Lure has higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Lake Lure flood?

Flood insurance has paid 10 claims in Lake Lure since 2018, $543K in all, or 4.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (8).

Is Lake Lure 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 Rutherford County, 38% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Lake Lure?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lake Lure’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 Lake Lure?

By FEMA money that reached Lake Lure, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 962 households applied for aid, $3.5M approved, and $18.0M to the Town of Lake Lure for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 8 paid, $515K.

Is Lake Lure at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Lake Lure’s rate for it is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lake Lure.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lake Lure’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.