Natural Disasters in Surf City, NC

Hazard risk, disaster history, and FEMA data

Natural Hazard Risk

Source: FEMA National Risk Index

Risk Score

86.9

Relatively Moderate

Expected Annual Loss

87.3

Score (0-100)

Social Vulnerability

34.2

Score (0-100)

Community Resilience

65.7

Score (0-100)

Top Hazard Risks

Hurricane97.2Winter Weather87.9Wildfire86.9

Hazard	Risk Score
Hurricane	97.2
Winter Weather	87.9
Wildfire	86.9
Lightning	85.7
Coastal Flood	81.6
Ice Storm	73.9
Tornado	70.9
Heat Wave	62.9
Earthquake	55.6
Strong Wind	53.0
Cold Wave	40.2
Drought	37.8
Hail	29.5
Landslide	27.1

Scores range from 0 (lowest risk) to 100 (highest risk) relative to all U.S. communities. Data from FEMA National Risk Index.

Disaster Declarations

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA

Total Declarations

Most Recent

Winter Storm

Jan 2026

Most Common Type

Hurricane

22 declarations

Date	Type	Declaration
Jan 24, 2026	Winter Storm	SEVERE WINTER STORM
Aug 6, 2024	Tropical Storm	TROPICAL STORM DEBBY
Oct 1, 2022	Hurricane	HURRICANE IAN
Oct 14, 2020	Hurricane	HURRICANE ISAIAS
May 8, 2020	Severe Storm	SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING
Mar 25, 2020	Biological	COVID-19 PANDEMIC
Mar 13, 2020	Biological	COVID-19
Oct 4, 2019	Hurricane	HURRICANE DORIAN
Sep 3, 2019	Hurricane	HURRICANE DORIAN
Sep 14, 2018	Hurricane	HURRICANE FLORENCE
Sep 10, 2018	Hurricane	HURRICANE FLORENCE
Oct 10, 2016	Hurricane	HURRICANE MATTHEW
Oct 7, 2016	Hurricane	HURRICANE MATTHEW
Aug 31, 2011	Hurricane	HURRICANE IRENE
Aug 25, 2011	Hurricane	HURRICANE IRENE
Oct 14, 2010	Severe Storm	SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS
Sep 1, 2010	Hurricane	HURRICANE EARL
Oct 7, 2005	Hurricane	HURRICANE OPHELIA
Sep 14, 2005	Hurricane	HURRICANE OPHELIA
Sep 5, 2005	Hurricane	HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION

Showing 20 of 29 declarations

Individual Assistance

Source: FEMA Housing Assistance

Total IA Registrations

5,186

Total IA Distributed

$3,842,575

Repair/Replace

$2,053,301

Rental Assistance

$1,263,763

Disaster	Registrations	Total IA $	Avg Damage
DR-4827	2	N/A	—
DR-4393	4,714	$3,446,054	$1,513
DR-1490	115	$114,180	$1,770
DR-1942	73	$89,142	$1,215
DR-4019	157	$79,085	$648
DR-4487	18	$66,121	—
DR-4285	107	$47,992	$3,113

Individual and household assistance for homeowners and renters affected by federally declared disasters.

Flood Insurance (NFIP)

Source: FEMA NFIP

Total Claims

5,888

Total Claims Paid

$118,123,203

Avg Claim Payout

$20,062

County-level NFIP data from FEMA National Flood Insurance Program.

Disaster Recovery Spending

Source: FEMA Public Assistance

Total Federal Spending

$82,002,465

Disasters with PA

Total Projects

240

Disaster	Type	Projects	Federal $
DR-4393	Hurricane	69	$51,247,476
DR-4285	Hurricane	17	$9,511,718
DR-1292	Hurricane	67	$8,958,076
DR-4019	Hurricane	20	$5,922,547
DR-4465	Hurricane	11	$2,734,626
DR-4568	Hurricane	10	$1,793,741
DR-3254	Hurricane	7	$1,186,746
DR-1608	Hurricane	12	$208,855
DR-1490	Hurricane	10	$149,522
DR-3608	Tropical Storm	3	$128,380
DR-3141	Hurricane	8	$46,507
DR-1969	Severe Storm(s)	1	$43,508
DR-3586	Hurricane	4	$43,063
DR-4487	Biological	1	$27,700

Hazard Mitigation

Source: FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance

Mitigation Projects

Federal Funding

$603,916

Properties Protected

Avg Benefit-Cost Ratio

2.49

BCR

Top Mitigation Project Types

Project Type	Projects	Federal $
200.1: Acquisition of Private Real Property (Structures and Land) - Riverine	8	$208,196
200.2: Acquisition of Private Real Property (Structures and Land) - Coastal	2	$250,880
202.1: Elevation of Private Structures - Riverine	1	$0
202.4: Elevation of Public Structures - Coastal	1	$0
202.2: Elevation of Private Structures - Coastal	1	$0

Federally funded projects to reduce future disaster risk. Only includes completed or obligated projects.

Surf City has a relatively moderate overall natural hazard risk rating according to FEMA's National Risk Index. The top hazard risks are hurricane, winter weather, wildfire. The area has had 29 federal disaster declarations. The most common disaster type is hurricane (22 declarations). 5,888 flood insurance claims have been filed in the area. FEMA has obligated $82,002,465 in public assistance recovery funding. $3,842,575 has been distributed in individual assistance to disaster-affected residents. 18 hazard mitigation projects have been funded to reduce future risk.