Natural hazards · Belhaven

Belhaven, NC natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Belhaven comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1,906 claims here since 1979. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Belhaven?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Belhaven to be higher than in 99% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and coastal flooding.

Hurricanes65%Coastal flooding19%Inland flooding11%Everything else6%

By hazard

What Belhaven faces

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

Hurricanes

65% of expected damage

Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Coastal flooding

19% of expected damage

Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Inland flooding

11% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 26% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce 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 Belhaven flood?

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

1,906paid claims since 1979

$23.8Mpaid to owners

287homes flooded more than once

19792026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Bonnie: 284 claims, $2.2M
Hurricane Floyd: 279 claims, $3.3M
Hurricane Irene: 256 claims, $4.4M

Homes that flooded again and again

Each house = 5 homes. ■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (93) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

🏷️ 10% off flood insurance. Belhaven is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 8) for its flood-proofing work.

Insurance rates: Beaufort County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

497homes raised above flood level

13flood-prone properties bought out and cleared

Disasters that hit Belhaven

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Belhaven itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the Town of Belhaven.

Brought FEMA money into BelhavenDeclared for Beaufort County only

2018

Hurricane Florence

326 households applied for aid $396K aid approved

2016

Hurricane Matthew

57 households applied for aid $52K aid approved

2011

Hurricane Irene

816 households applied for aid $2.0M aid approved

2010

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Straight-Line Winds

28 households applied for aid $24K aid approved

2003

Hurricane Isabel

542 households applied for aid $792K aid approved

Beaufort County has had 23 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. Belhaven is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

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

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.