Photo: M.O. Stevens · Public domainFEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Hayesville than in 61% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hayesville gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns, #46 of 142 in Oregon. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (62%), then river and rain flooding (36%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Hayesville faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
River and rain flooding
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 Hayesville’s grade
Earthquakes are 62% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hayesville, and Hayesville’s rate of earthquakes damage is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 36% (lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts).
C+ #46 of 142 in Oregon; higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Hayesville’s residents live in 6 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Oregon town has higher expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, Hayesville has less expected damage per building than 68% of Oregon towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $7.0M a year in losses across Hayesville: $3.8M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Hayesville flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Hayesville. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Hayesville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Marion County.The storms Hayesville remembers
None of the 10 disasters declared for Marion County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Hayesville itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Marion County has had 10 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Marion County, 2020–2023.
Hayesville and its neighbors
Hayesville is 2nd of the 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salem | C+more damage than 59% | earthquakes | 164 |
| Hayesville | C+more damage than 61% | earthquakes | 0 |
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 Hayesville faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- 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 Hayesville
Is Hayesville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hayesville has higher expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #46 of 142 in Oregon. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (62%) and river and rain flooding (36%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Hayesville 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 Marion County, 29% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Hayesville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Hayesville’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Hayesville at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (62%), and Hayesville’s rate for it is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hayesville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Hayesville’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.