Photo: User:Dincher · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Knoxville
Knoxville isn’t graded for hazard risk: Knoxville has 784 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1994.
What Knoxville 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
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.
Does Knoxville flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1994
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Knoxville, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Debby1 claim · $17K
Knoxville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Tioga County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Knoxville
Disasters that paid out in Knoxville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Knoxville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Tropical Storm Debby94 households applied for aid$934K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $17K
- 2004Tropical Depression Ivan9 households applied for aid$13K aid approved
Tioga County has had 16 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Knoxville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Knoxville archive →Get ready for what Knoxville faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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 Knoxville
Does Knoxville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Knoxville since 1994, $65K in all. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Debby (1).
Is Knoxville 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 Tioga County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Knoxville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Knoxville’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 Knoxville?
By FEMA money that reached Knoxville, Tropical Storm Debby (2024): 94 households applied for aid, $934K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Debby: 1 paid, $17K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Knoxville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Knoxville’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.