244 flood insurance claims·$5.9M paid·4 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Wicomico County, Maryland. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms and recurring coastal flooding dominate the flood profile of Wicomico County, supported by NOAA records that logged 21 flash flood events, 9 coastal flood events, and 9 standard flood events over the last 30 years. Recent impacts include an October 2025 coastal low and high pressure system that caused widespread moderate to locally major tidal flooding across the lower Maryland Eastern Shore, as well as slow-moving August 2025 storms that produced heavy rainfall and localized flooding in the Salisbury area.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that risk extends beyond high-risk areas. Properties located in Zone A experienced the highest impact with 165 claims, an average payout of $38,818, and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches. However, properties in Zone X also recorded significant activity with 51 claims, an average payout of $21,698, and an average water depth of 7 inches, while Zone X_UNSHADED, Zone X_SHADED, and unknown zones recorded a combined 27 claims with average payouts ranging from $588 to $10,848 and average water depths of 1 to 2 inches.
Homeowners and real estate professionals in designated high-risk coastal and riverine areas should pay the closest attention to these patterns, though property owners in Zone X must also note that significant flood claims and water accumulation occur outside standard high-risk zones.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
13% of Wicomico County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
190 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 6 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 2012, with 68 claims and $1.8M paid, the year of Hurricane Sandy.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
10 NOAA storm reports from Wicomico County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Maryland flood stories →
14 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 26, 2012 |
| Hurricane Irene | Aug 26, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorms | Feb 5, 2010 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Hurricane Isabel | Sep 18, 2003 |
| Blizzard Of 96 (severe Snow Storm) | Jan 6, 1996 |
| Severe Snowfall & Winter Storm | Mar 13, 1993 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
50 since 1996: 21 flash floods, 9 river or area floods and 9 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Flood | Oct 29, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Aug 21, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 14, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 12, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Nov 15, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 12, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 22, 2023 | $20,000 |
| Flash Flood | Dec 18, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Coastal Flood · Oct 29, 2025. Low pressure off the Mid-Atlantic coast combined with high pressure in Canada, resulting in a lengthy period of northeasterly onshore flow. Increasing tidal anomalies resulted in moderate to locally major tidal flooding over an extended period.
Coastal Flood · Aug 21, 2025. Hurricane Erin passed well offshore and combined with high pressure to the north, resulting in a period of strong onshore winds and coastal flooding across the Lower Maryland Eastern Shore.
Flash Flood · Aug 14, 2025. A late-summer hot and humid airmass was in place across the lower Maryland Eastern Shore on August 14. Additionally, a slow-moving cold front stalled southern Maryland, extending southwest in Virginia. Showers and storms with heavy rainfall produced localized flooding in the Salisbury area in the afternoon.
Coastal Flood · Oct 12, 2025. A coastal low formed off of the Southeast coast on October 11 and slowly tracked north into October 13 before moving offshore. Meanwhile, a strong 1035mb area of high pressure lingered over the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. This resulted in a prolonged period of strong northeast to north winds across the Chesapeake Bay and coastal waters, which allowed for widespread moderate coastal flooding across the lower Maryland E…
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Wicomico County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.