FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Coalfield than in 78% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Coalfield gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns, #146 of 177 in Tennessee. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%). 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 Coalfield 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
Tornadoes
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 Coalfield’s grade
River and rain flooding is 83% of the building damage FEMA expects in Coalfield, and Coalfield’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 6% (higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts).
C− #146 of 177 in Tennessee; higher expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Coalfield’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Tennessee town has higher expected damage than 53% of U.S. towns; within the state, Coalfield has more expected damage per building than 82% of Tennessee towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $823K a year in losses across Coalfield: $518K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Coalfield flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Coalfield. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Coalfield isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Morgan County.The storms Coalfield remembers
None of the 17 disasters declared for Morgan County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Coalfield itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Morgan County has had 17 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.
Coalfield and its neighbors
Coalfield 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oliver Springs | C+more damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Coalfield | C−more damage than 78% | river and rain flooding | 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 Coalfield 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.
- 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.
- 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 Coalfield
Is Coalfield at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Coalfield has higher expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #146 of 177 in Tennessee. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%) and tornadoes (6%). 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 Coalfield 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 Morgan County, 14% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Coalfield?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Coalfield’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Coalfield at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (83%), and Coalfield’s rate for it is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Coalfield.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Coalfield’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.