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B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Mountain City · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Mountain City faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mountain City gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (89%). Flood insurance has paid 17 claims here since 1984.

River and rain flooding 89%Earthquakes 4%Tornadoes 3%

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 53%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B−
in Tennessee · higher than 53% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
89% of expected building damage
Flood claims
17
paid since 1984 · $791K
Disasters paid out here
5
of 15 declared for Johnson County
By hazard

What Mountain City 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

89%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 1 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Hurricanes Strong wind Ice storms Hail Wildfire Lightning Winter storms Landslides Cold waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHeat wavesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 16% of Mountain City’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 Mountain City’s grade

River and rain flooding is 89% of the building damage FEMA expects in Mountain City, and Mountain City’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Mountain City sits
Mountain City
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding89%Earthquakes4%Tornadoes3%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $849K a year in losses across Mountain City: $609K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Tropical Storm Helene in 2024, FEMA took 1,277 aid registrations from Mountain City addresses (the town has 1,301 homes) and flood insurance paid 13 claims for $559K.
Shared tract.All of Mountain City’s 2,415 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. 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 Mountain City flood? Sometimes: 17 flood claims since 1984

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Mountain City, from FEMA’s records: 13.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 78% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 1 claim1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 2 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 13 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198420132024
19842026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Helene13 claims · $559K
17
paid claims since 1984
$791K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$47K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Johnson County.
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Mountain City

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

  1. 2024Tropical Storm Helene1,277 households applied for aid$3.5M aid approved$5.0M to the Town of Mountain City for repairs13 flood claims paid for it, $559K
  2. 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Associated Flooding110 households applied for aid$126K aid approved
  3. 2004Severe Storms and Flooding$18K to the Town of Mountain City for repairs
  4. 2003Severe Storms and Flooding$58K to the Town of Mountain City for repairs
  5. 2001Severe Storms and Flooding$61K to the Town of Mountain City for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Mountain CityJohnson County only

Johnson County has had 15 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.

Were you here?

Old photos of Mountain City after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Mountain City archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Mountain City faces

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

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 ↗
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 Mountain City

Is Mountain City at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mountain City has higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (89%). 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.

Does Mountain City flood?

Flood insurance has paid 17 claims in Mountain City since 1984, $791K in all, or 13.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 78% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (13).

Is Mountain City 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 Johnson County, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Mountain City?

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

By FEMA money that reached Mountain City, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 1,277 households applied for aid, $3.5M approved, and $5.0M to the Town of Mountain City for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 13 paid, $559K.

Is Mountain City at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (89%), and Mountain City’s rate for it is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Mountain City.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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