Natural hazards · Unicoi

Unicoi, TN natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Unicoi comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 2018. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Unicoi?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Unicoi to be higher than in 45% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and cold waves.

Inland flooding62%Cold waves17%Strong wind7%Everything else15%

By hazard

What Unicoi faces

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

Inland flooding

62% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 70% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Cold waves

17% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 59% of U.S. places

Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Strong wind

7% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 77% of U.S. places

Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Unicoi flood?

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

4paid claims since 2018

$34Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20182026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Helene: 1 claim, $9K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Unicoi County.

Disasters that hit Unicoi

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into UnicoiDeclared for Unicoi County only

2024

Tropical Storm Helene

232 households applied for aid $226K aid approved $101K to the Town of Unicoi for repairs

Unicoi County has had 14 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

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. Unicoi 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 Unicoi’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Unicoi. 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.