Watauga, NC
Watauga County in North Carolina has 14 FEMA disaster declarations on record covering 1973–2022, most recently Hurricane Ian on Oct 1, 2022 (DR-3586). Its flood risk grade is B (Moderate risk), ranking #93 of 3,277 U.S. counties, with 42 NFIP flood insurance claims totaling $951,905 in payouts. Flood risk is relatively low compared to the national average.
FEMA Disaster Declarations in Watauga County
The 14 most recent federally declared disasters affecting Watauga County, NC (1973–2022). Total declarations on record: 14.
| Declared | Incident Type | Title | FEMA Disaster # |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2022 | Hurricane | Hurricane Ian | DR-3586 |
| Sep 8, 2021 | Hurricane | Remnants of Tropical Storm Fred | DR-4617 |
| Aug 2, 2020 | Hurricane | Hurricane Isaias | DR-3534 |
| Sep 3, 2019 | Hurricane | Hurricane Dorian | DR-3423 |
| Sep 10, 2018 | Hurricane | Hurricane Florence | DR-3401 |
| Oct 29, 2013 | Flood | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides | DR-4153 |
| Sep 25, 2013 | Flood | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | DR-4146 |
| Sep 5, 2005 | Hurricane | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | DR-3222 |
| Sep 18, 2004 | Hurricane | Hurricane Ivan | DR-1553 |
| Sep 10, 2004 | Hurricane | Tropical Storm Frances | DR-1546 |
| Oct 23, 1995 | Flood | Severe Storms, Flooding, High Winds | DR-1073 |
| Sep 25, 1989 | Hurricane | Hurricane Hugo | DR-844 |
| Nov 9, 1977 | Flood | Severe Storms & Flooding | DR-542 |
| Jun 25, 1973 | Flood | Severe Storms & Flooding | DR-394 |
Score Breakdown
The composite score of 23 is calculated from four weighted factors. See our methodology for details.
Other Counties in North Carolina
| County | Grade | Score | Claims | Disasters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davidson | B | 23 | 11 | 14 |
| Tyrrell | B | 24 | 49 | 17 |
| Buncombe | B | 22 | 108 | 12 |
| Alamance | B | 22 | 11 | 12 |
| Orange | B | 22 | 50 | 12 |
| Guilford | B | 22 | 34 | 12 |
More Counties in North Carolina
Frequently Asked Questions
How many FEMA disaster declarations does Watauga County, NC have?
Watauga County, NC has 14 federal disaster declarations on FEMA record (1973–2022). The 5 most recent are: Hurricane Ian (declared Oct 1, 2022, DR-3586); Remnants of Tropical Storm Fred (declared Sep 8, 2021, DR-4617); Hurricane Isaias (declared Aug 2, 2020, DR-3534); Hurricane Dorian (declared Sep 3, 2019, DR-3423); Hurricane Florence (declared Sep 10, 2018, DR-3401). Counts include flood, severe storm, hurricane, and coastal storm declarations from the OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries dataset.
What is the flood risk grade for Watauga County, NC?
Watauga County is graded B (composite score 23/100, moderate risk). It ranks #93 of 3,277 U.S. counties for flood risk in our scoring model. The grade combines NFIP claims density (40%), disaster frequency (25%), claim severity (20%), and year-over-year trend (15%).
How many NFIP flood insurance claims have been filed in Watauga County?
42 NFIP flood insurance claims have been filed in Watauga County, NC, totaling $951,905 in payouts. The average claim is $22,664. Source: FEMA FimaNfipClaims v2 dataset.
Has Watauga County, NC had any recent flood disasters?
Yes. The most recent FEMA declaration affecting Watauga County was Hurricane Ian on Oct 1, 2022 (DR-3586). The county has 14 declared disasters in the OpenFEMA record covering 1973–2022.
The this entity record above pulls directly from FEMA OpenFEMA datasets including the National Flood Hazard Layer and NFIP claims. What follows is the per-entity context — how this entity sits in the broader U.S. flood risk, NFIP claims, and disaster declarations distribution and which underlying factors drive the headline numbers.
The methodology behind every numeric value on this page is publicly documented on the FEMA OpenFEMA datasets including the National Flood Hazard Layer and NFIP claims portal and described in detail on this site’s methodology page. Refresh cadence varies by underlying series; the page surfaces the as-of date for each number so readers can trace any figure back to the source release.
For readers using this page as a decision input, the related-entity pages elsewhere on the site provide the comparison set. The most useful comparison for this entity is typically a peer within U.S. ZIPs, counties, and states with similar size, similar exposure, or similar geography — not the national-level summary alone.
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA datasets, 2026.