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Bruceton-Templeton-Park-tnPhoto: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Bruceton · FEMA

FEMA puts Bruceton’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 76% of U.S. towns, led by earthquakes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bruceton gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (48%), then river and rain flooding (32%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

Earthquakes 48%River and rain flooding 32%Tornadoes 14%

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 76%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in Tennessee · higher than 76% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Earthquakes
48% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
3
of 18 declared for Carroll County
By hazard

What Bruceton faces

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

Earthquakes

48%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts

River and rain flooding

32%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 74% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

14%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 14 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Ice storms Hail Hurricanes Wildfire Winter storms Landslides Lightning Cold waves Heat waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 22% of Bruceton’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 Bruceton’s grade

Earthquakes are 48% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bruceton, and Bruceton’s rate of earthquakes damage is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 14%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Bruceton sits
Bruceton
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Bruceton’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
Earthquakes48%River and rain flooding32%Tornadoes14%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Bruceton: $417K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Bruceton’s 1,507 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Hollow Rock town (683 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Bruceton flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

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

Insurance rates: Carroll County.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bruceton

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

  1. 2026Severe Winter Storm5 households applied for aid$15K aid approved
  2. 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Associated Flooding6 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
  3. 2010Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes17 households applied for aid$9K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BrucetonCarroll County only

Carroll County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe 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 Bruceton after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Bruceton archive →
Next door

Bruceton and its neighbors

Bruceton has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Hollow Rock: not gradedHollow RockBruceton
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
BrucetonC−more damage than 76%earthquakes0
Hollow Rock—739 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 Bruceton faces

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

Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
More from Ready.gov ↗
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 ↗
Tornado warnings
  • Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
  • A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
  • Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
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 Bruceton

Is Bruceton at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bruceton has higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (48%) and river and rain flooding (32%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Is Bruceton 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 Carroll County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Bruceton?

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

By FEMA money that reached Bruceton, Severe Winter Storm (2026): 5 households applied for aid, $15K approved.

Is Bruceton at risk from earthquakes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (48%), and Bruceton’s rate for it is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bruceton.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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