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Town Square, Glade Spring, VAPhoto: Rutke421 18:56, 10 April 2008 (UTC) · Public domain
A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Glade Spring · FEMA

FEMA puts Glade Spring’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 83% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Glade Spring gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 87%Earthquakes 7%Tornadoes 2%

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

less than 83%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A−
in Virginia · lower than 83% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
87% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
1
of 17 declared for Washington County

What stands out about Glade Spring’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Lower expected damage than 83% of U.S. townsFEMA’s model of yearly storm and flood damage per dollar of building.Landslides: the top 2% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for landslides here ranks in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts; it is 0.6% of the damage it expects.
By hazard

What Glade Spring 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

87%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Earthquakes

7%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 63% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Hurricanes Strong wind Ice storms Hail Landslides top 2% Wildfire Lightning Winter storms Cold waves Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHeat wavesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 10% of Glade Spring’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 Glade Spring’s grade

River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Glade Spring, and Glade Spring’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 7% (higher than 63% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Glade Spring sits
Glade Spring
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− lower expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding87%Earthquakes7%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $262K a year in losses across Glade Spring: $177K 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 80 aid registrations from Glade Spring addresses (the town has 750 homes).
Shared tract.All of Glade Spring’s 1,367 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 Glade Spring flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

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

Insurance rates: Washington County.
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Glade Spring

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

  1. 2024Tropical Storm Helene80 households applied for aid$137K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Glade SpringWashington County only

Washington County has had 17 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 Glade Spring after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Glade Spring archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Glade Spring 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 ↗
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 ↗
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 Glade Spring

Is Glade Spring at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Glade Spring has lower expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%) and earthquakes (7%). 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 Glade Spring 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 Washington County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Glade Spring?

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

By FEMA money that reached Glade Spring, Tropical Storm Helene (2024): 80 households applied for aid, $137K approved.

Is Glade Spring at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Glade Spring’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Glade Spring.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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