Natural hazards · St. Marys

St. Marys, GA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in St. Marys comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 73 claims here since 1992. 7 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is St. Marys?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in St. Marys to be higher than in 71% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and inland flooding.

Hurricanes50%Inland flooding21%Coastal flooding9%Tornadoes7%Everything else13%

By hazard

What St. Marys faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Hurricanes

50% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 94% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Inland flooding

21% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 16% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Coastal flooding

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places

Tornadoes

7% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 50% of U.S. places

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

DroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does St. Marys flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in St. Marys, from FEMA’s records.

73paid claims since 1992

$1.2Mpaid to owners

7homes flooded more than once

19922026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Irma: 30 claims, $591K
Hurricane Matthew: 10 claims, $161K
Hurricane Nicole: 4 claims, $131K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

🏷️ 20% off flood insurance. St. Marys is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 6) for its flood-proofing work.

Insurance rates: Camden County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

1buildings retrofitted against wind

Disasters that hit St. Marys

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in St. Marys itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the City of St. Marys.

Brought FEMA money into St. MarysDeclared for Camden County only

2024

Hurricane Helene

938 households applied for aid $391K aid approved $402K to the City of St. Marys for repairs

2023

Hurricane Idalia

$7K to the City of St. Marys for repairs

2017

Hurricane Irma

1,685 households applied for aid $462K aid approved $1.2M to the City of St. Marys for repairs

2016

Hurricane Matthew

$244K to the City of St. Marys for repairs

2009

Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-Line Winds

2 households applied for aid

2004

Tropical Storm Frances

$72K to the City of St. Marys for repairs

1999

Hurricane Floyd Emergency Declarations

$14K to the City of St. Marys for repairs

Camden County has had 15 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and severe storms.

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. St. Marys covers 5 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to St. Marys’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of St. Marys. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across St. Marys total about $7.8M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); 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. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.