Natural hazards · Clarkton

Clarkton, NC natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Clarkton comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 2018. 7 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Clarkton?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Clarkton to be higher than in 88% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and inland flooding.

Hurricanes63%Inland flooding17%Strong wind6%Tornadoes6%Everything else8%

By hazard

What Clarkton faces

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

Hurricanes

63% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 96% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Inland flooding

17% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 40% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Strong wind

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 96% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 78% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 20 years in the area

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Clarkton flood?

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

3paid claims since 2018

$215Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20182026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Florence: 3 claims, $215K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Clarkton isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Bladen County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

3flood-prone properties bought out and cleared

1homes raised above flood level

Disasters that hit Clarkton

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into ClarktonDeclared for Bladen County only

2018

Hurricane Florence

632 households applied for aid $1.1M aid approved $242K to the Town of Clarkton for repairs

2016

Hurricane Matthew

569 households applied for aid $366K aid approved $200K to the Town of Clarkton for repairs

2011

Hurricane Irene

35 households applied for aid $14K aid approved

2011

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

50 households applied for aid $9K aid approved

2004

Tropical Storm Frances

445 households applied for aid $598K aid approved

2003

Hurricane Isabel

560 households applied for aid $693K aid approved

1999

Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations

$77K to the Town of Clarkton for repairs

Bladen County has had 21 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and winter 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. Clarkton 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 Clarkton’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Clarkton. 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.