Disaster Data / States / Tennessee / Rhea County
CountyRhea County recorded 14 federal disaster and emergency declarations since FY2000 (through FY2025): 10 major disasters, 3 emergencies, and 1 fire-management declarations. Its most common hazard is severe storm.
Highlighted: Rhea County, TN
Totals: FY2000–FY2025 · Page last rebuilt Sep 12, 2026 · the current in-progress fiscal year is not included in totals
The federal disaster record for Rhea County runs between 2001 and 2025, covering 14 declarations in all. Its most recent major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Tornado in 2023. The hazards behind these declarations were most often severe storm, biological, and severe ice storm. Since 2000, FEMA has obligated about $1.7 million in Public Assistance funding to the jurisdiction, most of it for debris removal.
Historical declarations show what has happened here. These national datasets add context about underlying natural-hazard risk and community vulnerability.
Approximately 72.4% of U.S. counties have an equal or lower overall SVI ranking.
Higher percentiles indicate greater relative social vulnerability within the CDC SVI framework. CDC SVI documentation
The NRI combines expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience to describe relative natural-hazard risk. FEMA NRI documentation
Federal share obligated to this jurisdiction under FEMA Public Assistance since 2000, grouped by damage category. Figures are rounded to the nearest dollar and reflect obligations, which may change as projects close out.
| Category | Projects | Federal share obligated |
|---|---|---|
| Debris removal(A) | 16 | $606,338 |
| Utilities(F) | 10 | $450,437 |
| Roads and bridges(C) | 27 | $336,081 |
| Parks and recreation(G) | 8 | $154,514 |
| Emergency protective measures(B) | 23 | $123,296 |
| Water control facilities(D) | 1 | $40,169 |
| Buildings and equipment(E) | 5 | $8,192 |
| Management costs(Z) | 3 | $6,960 |
| All categories | 93 | $1,725,987 |
For each disaster, the wait from the declaration to the first federal obligation (amber), then the federal share obligating after that (teal), on a shared 2-year scale. Typical wait to the first obligation here: about 114 days. An obligation is the federal share committed to the recipient state, not funds disbursed to the locality, which comes later and is not shown.
FEMA Individual Assistance to households in this jurisdiction, combined across the Housing Assistance owner and renter programs. Valid registrations are households that applied within a designated Individual Assistance area; approved counts and dollars are the households FEMA found eligible under the Individuals and Households Program. Figures are self-reported and drawn from NEMIS through OpenFEMA, not audited, and Individual Assistance exists only for disasters where it was designated, so many jurisdictions show none.
| Assistance type | Approved amount |
|---|---|
| Repair and replacement | $360,937 |
| Rental assistance | $37,491 |
| Other needs | $395,141 |
Federal Hazard Mitigation Assistance obligated to this jurisdiction to reduce future disaster losses, across the FEMA mitigation programs. This is the record of past mitigation investment a local hazard mitigation plan documents. Figures are federal share obligated, reported through OpenFEMA and not audited, and are separate from the Public Assistance funding above.
| Program | Projects | Federal share obligated |
|---|---|---|
| Hazard Mitigation Grant Program(HMGP) | 1 | $21,427 |
Every local hazard mitigation plan must document previous occurrences of each hazard. Here is that record for Rhea County, sourced to OpenFEMA and refreshed weekly. Copy it straight into your plan.
| Hazard | Date | FEMA declaration | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Severe Storm | Apr 2, 2025 | EM-3625-TN | EM |
| Severe Storm | Sep 27, 2023 | DR-4742-TN | DR |
| Severe Storm | May 17, 2023 | DR-4712-TN | DR |
| Biological | Apr 2, 2020 | DR-4514-TN | DR |
| Biological | Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3473-TN | EM |
| Flood | Apr 17, 2019 | DR-4427-TN | DR |
| Severe Storm | Jun 23, 2017 | DR-4320-TN | DR |
| Severe Ice Storm | Apr 2, 2015 | DR-4211-TN | DR |
| Severe Storm | May 1, 2011 | DR-1974-TN | DR |
| Hurricane | Sep 5, 2005 | EM-3217-TN | EM |
| Severe Storm | Oct 7, 2004 | DR-1568-TN | DR |
| Severe Storm | May 8, 2003 | DR-1464-TN | DR |
| Severe Storm | Mar 20, 2003 | DR-1456-TN | DR |
| Fire | Nov 3, 2001 | FM-2387-TN | FM |
DR = Major disaster (Stafford Act) · EM = Emergency declaration · FM = Fire management assistance
Showing 14 declarations
| Date | Number | Type | Hazard | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2, 2025 | EM-3625-TN | EM | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Sep 27, 2023 | DR-4742-TN | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Tornado |
| May 17, 2023 | DR-4712-TN | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Tornado |
| Apr 2, 2020 | DR-4514-TN | DR | Biological | Covid-19 Pandemic |
| Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3473-TN | EM | Biological | Covid-19 |
| Apr 17, 2019 | DR-4427-TN | DR | Flood | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides |
| Jun 23, 2017 | DR-4320-TN | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding |
| Apr 2, 2015 | DR-4211-TN | DR | Severe Ice Storm | Severe Winter Storm And Flooding |
| May 1, 2011 | DR-1974-TN | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Associated Flooding |
| Sep 5, 2005 | EM-3217-TN | EM | Hurricane | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation |
| Oct 7, 2004 | DR-1568-TN | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| May 8, 2003 | DR-1464-TN | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Mar 20, 2003 | DR-1456-TN | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| Nov 3, 2001 | FM-2387-TN | FM | Fire | Tn - Chattanooga Fire Complex - 11/03/01 |
Drawn from FEMA's OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, rebuilt each week. A declaration is counted here once for each designated area it names, so a single disaster covering many localities is counted in each one. For that reason these jurisdiction counts do not sum to Tennessee's statewide total. This page counts declarations that named this jurisdiction as a designated area. Totals cover complete fiscal years (Oct 1 to Sep 30); the in-progress year may appear in the most-recent list but is not counted in the totals. Uses OpenFEMA data but is not endorsed by or affiliated with FEMA.
Choose a citation style, then copy the formatted citation. This profile is derived from FEMA OpenFEMA data and is updated as the underlying Disaster Data build is refreshed.