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Mars Hill High SchoolMars Hill High School · Photo: Warren LeMay from Cincinnati, OH, United States · CC0
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Mars Hill · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Mars Hill as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mars Hill gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 85%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 60%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 60% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
85% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
3
of 18 declared for Madison County
By hazard

What Mars Hill 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

85%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Ice storms Wildfire Strong wind Hurricanes Hail Lightning Landslides top 3% 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 13% of Mars Hill’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 Mars Hill’s grade

River and rain flooding is 85% of the building damage FEMA expects in Mars Hill, and Mars Hill’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 3%, at a rate in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Mars Hill sits
Mars Hill
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Mars Hill’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 flooding85%Tornadoes4%Earthquakes4%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $696K a year in losses across Mars Hill: $464K 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 1,366 aid registrations from Mars Hill addresses (the town has 1,047 homes).
A small-area figure. Mars Hill 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 Mars Hill flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Mars Hill. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Madison County.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Mars Hill

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

  1. 2024Tropical Storm Helene1,366 households applied for aid$1.6M aid approved$89K to the Town of Mars Hill for repairs
  2. 2004Hurricane Ivan12 households applied for aid$32K aid approved
  3. 2004Tropical Storm Frances2 households applied for aid$10K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Mars HillMadison County only

Madison County has had 18 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 Mars Hill after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Mars Hill archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Mars Hill 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 Mars Hill

Is Mars Hill at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mars Hill has higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Is Mars Hill 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 Madison County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Mars Hill?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Mars Hill’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 Mars Hill?

By FEMA money that reached Mars Hill, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 1,366 households applied for aid, $1.6M approved, and $89K to the Town of Mars Hill for repairs.

Is Mars Hill at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (85%), and Mars Hill’s rate for it is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Mars Hill.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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