On FEMA’s figures, Spurgeon 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, Spurgeon gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns, #70 of 177 in Tennessee. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). 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 Spurgeon 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
Earthquakes
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 Spurgeon’s grade
River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Spurgeon, and Spurgeon’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 7% (higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts).
B− #70 of 177 in Tennessee; lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Spurgeon’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Tennessee town has higher expected damage than 53% of U.S. towns; within the state, Spurgeon has less expected damage per building than 61% of Tennessee towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $901K a year in losses across Spurgeon: $755K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Spurgeon flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Spurgeon. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Spurgeon isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Sullivan County.The storms Spurgeon remembers
None of the 8 disasters declared for Sullivan County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Spurgeon itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Sullivan County has had 8 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.
Spurgeon and its neighbors
Spurgeon is 4th of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson City | Aless damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | 78 |
| Gray | B+less damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Oak Grove | B−less damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Spurgeon | B−less damage than 54% | 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 Spurgeon 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Spurgeon
Is Spurgeon at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Spurgeon has lower expected damage per building than 54% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #70 of 177 in Tennessee. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%) and earthquakes (7%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Spurgeon 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 Sullivan County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Spurgeon?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Spurgeon’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Spurgeon at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Spurgeon’s rate for it is higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Spurgeon.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Spurgeon’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.