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Rasmus Midgett HouseRasmus Midgett House · Photo: Jasonspsyche · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Salvo · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Salvo

Salvo isn’t graded for hazard risk: Salvo has 220 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.

Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
3
of 22 declared for Dare County
By hazard

What Salvo faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Hurricanes

84%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Coastal flooding

11%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 River and rain flooding Wildfire Tornadoes Winter storms Hail Strong wind Earthquakes Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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. 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.
Flood insurance claims

Does Salvo flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Salvo. 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

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

Insurance rates: Dare County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1home raised above flood level
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Salvo

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

  1. 2016Hurricane Matthew3 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
  2. 2011Hurricane Irene155 households applied for aid$489K aid approved
  3. 2003Hurricane Isabel13 households applied for aid$10K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in SalvoDare County only

Dare County has had 22 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 Salvo after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Salvo archive →
Next door

Salvo and its neighbors

How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Waves: not gradedWavesSalvo
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Waves—153 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 Salvo faces

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

Hurricane season
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
When the tide surges
  • Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
  • Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
  • Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
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 Salvo

Is Salvo 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 Dare County, 84% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 39.7% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Salvo?

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

By FEMA money that reached Salvo, Hurricane Irene (2011): 155 households applied for aid, $489K approved.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Salvo.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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