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C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Maggie Valley · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Maggie Valley faces more hazard damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Maggie Valley gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). Flood insurance has paid 20 claims here since 1991.

River and rain flooding 88%Tornadoes 4%Earthquakes 4%

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 62%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C+
in North Carolina · higher than 62% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
88% of expected building damage
Flood claims
20
paid since 1991 · $1.1M
Disasters paid out here
5
of 17 declared for Haywood County

What stands out about Maggie Valley’s natural hazards

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

Landslides: the top 2% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for landslides here ranks in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts; it is 0.5% of the damage it expects.Remembers 202417 flood claims were paid for 2024 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Maggie Valley 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

88%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Ice storms Strong wind Hurricanes Hail Landslides top 2% Lightning Wildfire Winter storms Cold waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHeat wavesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 19% of Maggie Valley’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Maggie Valley’s grade

River and rain flooding is 88% of the building damage FEMA expects in Maggie Valley, and Maggie Valley’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Maggie Valley sits
Maggie Valley
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ higher expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Maggie Valley’s residents live in 5 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding88%Tornadoes4%Earthquakes4%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $982K a year in losses across Maggie Valley: $671K 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 582 aid registrations from Maggie Valley addresses (the town has 1,842 homes) and flood insurance paid 16 claims for $1.1M.
A small-area figure. Maggie Valley covers 5 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 Maggie Valley flood? Sometimes: 20 flood claims since 1991

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Maggie Valley, from FEMA’s records: 10.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1991: 1 claim1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 1 claim1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 1 claim2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 17 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims199119942024
19912026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Helene16 claims · $1.1M
20
paid claims since 1991
$1.1M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$57K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Haywood County.
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Maggie Valley

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

  1. 2024Tropical Storm Helene582 households applied for aid$2.7M aid approved$4.3M to the Town of Maggie Valley for repairs16 flood claims paid for it, $1.1M
  2. 2021Remnants of Tropical Storm Fred20 households applied for aid$160 aid approved
  3. 2009Severe Winter Storms and Flooding$45K to the Town of Maggie Valley for repairs
  4. 2004Hurricane Ivan11 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
  5. 2004Tropical Storm Frances5 households applied for aid$15K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Maggie ValleyHaywood County only

Haywood 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Maggie Valley archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Maggie Valley 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 Maggie Valley

Is Maggie Valley at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Maggie Valley has higher expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Maggie Valley flood?

Flood insurance has paid 20 claims in Maggie Valley since 1991, $1.1M in all, or 10.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (16).

Is Maggie Valley 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 Haywood County, 27% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.0% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Maggie Valley?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Maggie Valley’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 Maggie Valley?

By FEMA money that reached Maggie Valley, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 582 households applied for aid, $2.7M approved, and $4.3M to the Town of Maggie Valley for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 16 paid, $1.1M.

Is Maggie Valley at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (88%), and Maggie Valley’s rate for it is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Maggie Valley.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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