Storm risk in Hamilton County, Tennessee
FEMA's overall hazard score for Hamilton County is 93.29 (Relatively Moderate), 212th of 3,144 counties. Hail scores 82.60 (Relatively Moderate), strong wind 97.52 (Relatively High) and tornado 98.6 (Relatively High). Expected hail loss is $11 per $1 million of buildings a year; NOAA logged 20 hail reports in Hamilton County from 2014 to June 2026.
FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026. NOAA hail reports 2014 to June 2026.
- Hamilton County, coloured by its FEMA rating
- all U.S. counties
- each county in the state
- U.S. median
- state median
Expected yearly loss per $1 million of buildings, log scale. Dot colour is FEMA’s rating band. The tornado lane counts everything exposed, not only buildings.
How FEMA rates Hamilton County
| Hazard | Rating | Score (0 to 100) | Rank in U.S. | Rank in TN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | Relatively Moderate | 93.29 | 212 of 3,144 | 3 of 95 |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | 82.60 | 548 of 3,126 | 4 of 95 |
| Strong wind | Relatively High | 97.52 | 79 of 3,126 | 1 of 95 |
| Tornado | Relatively High | 98.60 | 45 of 3,126 | 2 of 95 |
Expected yearly loss, in dollars
| Hazard | This county, total a year | Per $1M of buildings | State median county | U.S. median county | Rank per $1M, U.S. | Rank per $1M, state |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | $868,906 | $11 | $12 | $22 | 1,998 of 3,126 | 49 of 95 |
| Strong wind | $550,621 | $7.24 | $34 | $20 | 2,433 of 3,121 | 88 of 95 |
| Tornado | $31,555,082 | $415 | $403 | $199 | 631 of 3,144 | 45 of 95 |
Rank 1 is the highest. Overall, hail and wind losses count buildings; the tornado row counts everything FEMA exposes, so it overstates building damage. Expected annual loss is an average over many years for the whole county, not a forecast for one roof.
What stands out in Hamilton County
- FEMA expects hail in Hamilton County to cost $11 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.51 times the U.S. median and 0.93 times the TN county median, ranked 1,998th of 3,126 counties nationally and 49th of 95 in Tennessee.
- FEMA expects strong wind in Hamilton County to cost $7.24 per $1 million of buildings a year: 0.36 times the U.S. median and 0.21 times the TN county median, ranked 2,433rd of 3,121 counties nationally and 88th of 95 in Tennessee.
- FEMA expects tornado in Hamilton County to cost $415 per $1 million of buildings a year: 2.09 times the U.S. median and 1.03 times the TN county median, ranked 631st of 3,144 counties nationally and 45th of 95 in Tennessee.
- Applying FEMA's estimate to a $282,100 home, the average yearly loss in Hamilton County is about $3.22 for hail and $2.04 for wind before any deductible; at the U.S. median county rates it would be $6.30 and $5.75.
- If the next years look like 2014 to 2025, a roof kept 20 years in Hamilton County meets about 20.0 hail days of 1 inch or more; the median county in NOAA's file (1,275 counties) would give 35.0.
- Built in 1980, the median home in Hamilton County is 46 years old, so an original roof has outlived a 3-tab shingle (15 to 20 years) and an architectural one (25 to 30 years); 73.3% of its 165,605 homes are at least 26 years old.
- March to June holds 19 of the 20 hail reports in Hamilton County (95 percent); the quietest month is January, with 0 reports.
What hail and wind cost a home here in an average year
Enter a home value. The calculator applies Hamilton County’s own loss rate: the county’s expected yearly loss divided by the value of its buildings. It starts at the Census median home value for the county.
Formula: home value × Hamilton County yearly loss ÷ building value. Hail: $868,906 ÷ $76,010,998,943 = 0.0000114. Wind: $550,621 ÷ $76,010,998,943 = 0.0000072. This is FEMA’s estimate of average damage to buildings and does not account for your deductible. Tornado is left out because FEMA’s tornado loss counts people and other exposure, not only buildings.
Read this as a yardstick. The rate is an average over every building in the county, from sheds to office towers, and over many years. Real losses come in rare, large storms; a roof with no damage in 19 years can need full replacement in the 20th. The figure is not a quote and not a prediction for one address.
Hamilton County in plain numbers
- Hamilton County scores 93.29 in FEMA's overall hazard index (Relatively Moderate): 212th of 3,144 rated counties and 3rd of 95 in Tennessee.
- Hail scores 82.60 (Relatively Moderate). FEMA expects $868,906 of hail damage to buildings in Hamilton County a year, which is $11 per $1 million of buildings, 0.51 times the U.S. median.
- Strong wind scores 97.52 (Relatively High) with $550,621 of expected yearly building loss in Hamilton County: $7.24 per $1 million of buildings, 0.36 times the U.S. median.
- Tornado scores 98.6 (Relatively High) and FEMA's expected yearly tornado loss is $31,555,082, counting everything exposed, or $415 per $1 million of buildings in Hamilton County.
- FEMA's own event record for Hamilton County averages 3.68 hail events and 4.65 strong-wind events a year.
- NOAA logged 20 hail reports in Hamilton County between 2014 and June 2026, on 12 days with stones of 1 inch or more; the largest was 1.75 inches.
- In Hamilton County, FEMA counts buildings worth 76.01 billion dollars and 365,901 residents.
- Social vulnerability is Relatively Low in Hamilton County.
- Community resilience there is Relatively High, for 365,901 residents.
- 1 city in Hamilton County is covered on this site: Chattanooga. 25 Census ZIP areas have more than half of their land in the county.
- Our guide range for a 2,000 sq ft asphalt roof in Chattanooga is $6,160 to $13,640.
- Hamilton County ranks 130 of the 194 counties with a page here for hail loss per $1 million of buildings, 131 for wind and 37 for tornado.
- In Hamilton County, May is the busiest month with 7 of the 20 reports (35 percent), against 0 reports in November.
- Hamilton County's worst year was 2025, with 5 hail days at 1 inch or more and 11 reports. At the 2014 to 2025 pace that is 1.00 such days a year, one about every 12.0 months.
- The median home in Hamilton County was built in 1980; 49.9% of its 165,605 housing units date from before 1980, 73.3% from before 2000 and 13.3% from 2010 on.
- Census puts the median home value in Hamilton County at $282,100, and 64.3% of homes are lived in by their owners.
- 17,081 single-family building permits were issued in Hamilton County from 2014 to 2025, about 103.1 per 1,000 homes, peaking in 2021.
- NOAA lists 2 tornado tracks in Hamilton County since 2014; the strongest was an EF3 on April 12, 2020 near East Ridge, 12.75 miles long.
- The fastest gust in NOAA's records for Hamilton County is 90 mph on June 7, 2025 at White Oak.
- The nearest county with a page here is Putnam County, 65 miles from the centre of Hamilton County; its hail score is 73.00.
- Across counties the median is one roofing firm for every 5,189 homes; Census counted 29 roofing contractor establishments in Hamilton County in 2023, one for every 5,711 homes.
The hail record of Hamilton County, year by year
NOAA logged 20 reports in Hamilton County; hail of 1 inch or more fell on 12 days. That is 1.0 such days a year; the median county in NOAA’s file has 1.8.
- reports
- days with hail of 1 inch or more
- * 2026 runs to June only
Reports by calendar month, all years together. Peak: May, 7 reports.
The same numbers as a table (years with at least one report)
| Year | Reports | Days, 1 inch or more | Days, 1.75 inch or more | Largest stone | Damage reported |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 in | – |
| 2017 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1.75 in | – |
| 2022 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 in | – |
| 2023 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1.75 in | – |
| 2024 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 in | – |
| 2025 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 1.25 in | – |
Biggest hail days in Hamilton County
| Date | Largest stone | Reports that day | Damage reported | Near |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 1, 2017 | 1.75 in | 2 | none recorded | Chickamauga |
| June 25, 2023 | 1.75 in | 2 | none recorded | Brainerd |
| April 10, 2025 | 1.25 in | 2 | none recorded | Rathburn |
| March 21, 2017 | 1.25 in | 1 | none recorded | Salem |
| May 12, 2025 | 1.25 in | 1 | none recorded | Montlake |
Where large hail was reported
FEMA scores the county as a whole. NOAA’s reports show where inside Hamilton County the big stones fell.
Reported hail locations, Hamilton County
- 171 to 1.74 in
- 21.75 to 2.74 in, golf ball to tennis ball
- 02.75 in and up, baseball
Largest plotted stone: 1.75 in. Bigger dots are bigger stones.
19 reports of 1 inch or larger have coordinates. Each dot is a reported location, not a storm path.
Sources: NOAA, Census county outlineWind and tornado records for Hamilton County
Fastest gusts in Hamilton County
| Date | Gust | Near |
|---|---|---|
| June 7, 2025 | 90 mph | White Oak |
| June 7, 2025 | 81 mph | Collegedale Arpk |
| June 7, 2025 | 81 mph | Ooltewah |
| June 7, 2025 | 70 mph | Lupton City |
Strongest tornado tracks in Hamilton County
| Date | Scale | Length | Injured / killed | Near |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 12, 2020 | EF3 | 12.75 mi | 18 / 2 | East Ridge |
| March 2, 2023 | EF0 | 2.12 mi | 0 / 0 | New Pt |
2 tornado tracks in all since 2014; the strongest 2 are listed.
How old the roofs are
Census counts homes by the decade they were built. Under each bar is the number of hail days of 1 inch or more that an original roof from that decade has met, at Hamilton County’s 2014 to 2025 pace of 1.00 such days a year. Most roofs have been replaced since; the row shows what a roof that never was would have taken.
Bars: share of 165,605 housing units by decade built. Figures under the decade: hail days met by an original roof, at the county’s 2014 to 2025 pace. The pace of earlier years is unknown.
| Median year built | 1980 |
| Built before 1980 | 49.9% |
| Built before 2000 | 73.3% |
| Built since 2010 | 13.3% |
| Owner-occupied | 64.3% |
| Median home value | $282,100 |
| Single-family permits, 2014 to 2025 | 17,081 |
| Permits per 1,000 homes | 103.1 |
Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) and 25 to 30 years (architectural). Source: Census ACS 2019 to 2023 and Building Permits Survey.
Roofers and past disasters in Hamilton County
Roofing firms in Hamilton County
| Roofing contractor establishments, 2023 | 29 |
| Change since 2016 | +9 (+45%) |
| Homes per roofing firm | 5,711 |
| Median across counties | 5,189 |
| Employees, 2023 | 309 |
Source for Hamilton County: Census County Business Patterns, NAICS 238160.
Nearby counties
The closest counties that have a risk page, by distance between county centres. Loss is per $1 million of buildings; the columns marked "times here" divide the neighbour's loss by Hamilton County's.
| County | Miles | Overall | Hail loss | Hail, times here | Wind loss | Wind, times here | NOAA hail reports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Putnam County, TN | 65 | Relatively Low | $40 | 3.46 | $44 | 6.08 | 35 |
| Rutherford County, TN | 81 | Relatively Moderate | $5.61 | 0.49 | $5.54 | 0.76 | 48 |
| Knox County, TN | 88 | Relatively Moderate | $1.52 | 0.13 | $2.28 | 0.31 | 48 |
| Williamson County, TN | 106 | Relatively Moderate | $5.23 | 0.46 | $4.67 | 0.64 | 105 |
| Sumner County, TN | 111 | Relatively Moderate | $45 | 3.90 | $15 | 2.05 | 51 |
| Montgomery County, TN | 149 | Relatively Moderate | $48 | 4.19 | $46 | 6.29 | 20 |
More Tennessee counties, nearest first
- Washington County 168 mi
- Sullivan County 187 mi
- Madison County 206 mi
Cities and ZIP areas in Hamilton County
1 city in this county is on PickARoofer. ZIP Code Tabulation Areas are Census shapes that approximate ZIP codes; where we have a city’s ZIPs, the share is the part of each area’s land that lies in this county. 25 such areas have more than half their land here.
| City | ZIP areas (share of land in the county) | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| Chattanooga | 37402 (100%), 37403 (100%), 37404 (100%), 37405 (25%), 37421 (100%) | Roofers |
Storm hit your roof in Hamilton County? A free inspection tells you if there is damage. One local roofer answers, not five.
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How high is storm risk in Hamilton County?
FEMA's National Risk Index gives Hamilton County an overall score of 93.29 (Relatively Moderate), 212th of 3,144. Hail scores 82.60 (Relatively Moderate), strong wind 97.52 (Relatively High) and tornado 98.6 (Relatively High).
In Hamilton County, how many hail reports has NOAA logged?
A report is one entry for one storm in one county, so counts follow where people live as well as where hail fell. NOAA has 20 for Hamilton County between 2014 and June 2026, on 12 days with hail of 1 inch or more; the largest stone was 1.75 inches.
What do hail and wind cost a home in Hamilton County each year, on average?
Applying FEMA's county rates to its median home value of $282,100: FEMA's estimate is about $3.22 a year for hail and $2.04 for wind, before any deductible, against $6.30 and $5.75 at the U.S. median county rates. This is an average over many years and all buildings, not a prediction for one roof; one bad storm costs far more than the average year.
How does Hamilton County compare with the rest of Tennessee?
Per $1 million of buildings Hamilton County loses $11 to hail a year, against $12 in the median county of the state. Among 95 rated counties it is 4th for hail, 1st for strong wind and 2nd for tornado.
How old are the roofs in Hamilton County?
The median home was built in 1980, 46 years ago, and 73.3% of the 165,605 housing units in Hamilton County date from before 2000. Asphalt shingles are rated 15 to 20 years (3-tab) or 25 to 30 years (architectural), so an original roof of either kind is past its rated life. The Census does not record when a roof was replaced.
What does expected annual loss mean?
It is FEMA's estimate of the average yearly loss from a hazard, in dollars, summed over the county. It is built for comparing counties at planning level, not for pricing one house.
Does a high rating mean my roof will be damaged?
No. The index compares counties and cannot say what will happen on your street. After a storm, a roof inspection is the only way to know.
Sources for Hamilton County: FEMA National Risk Index, version December 2025, retrieved October 8, 2026; NOAA Storm Events Database hail reports for Hamilton County; Census Bureau ZCTA-to-county relationship file (2020); Census ACS and Building Permits Survey, homes in Hamilton County; Census County Business Patterns, roofing firms in Hamilton County. Planning-level information about Hamilton County, not an inspection and not insurance advice.
This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).