2,519 flood insurance claims·$19.3M 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 Worcester 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 prolonged coastal flooding dominate the flood history of Worcester County, where the NOAA Storm Events Database records 24 flash flood events, 18 tropical storms, 14 floods, 14 coastal floods, and 6 hurricanes over the last 30 years.
Recent events illustrate these distinct hazards. On October 12, 2025, a coastal low interacting with high pressure over the Gulf of Saint Lawrence produced prolonged northeast winds, causing widespread moderate coastal flooding across the lower Maryland Eastern Shore. Later, on July 19, 2025, deep moisture pooling south of a stationary front and strong surface heating generated slow-moving convection, leading to heavy rainfall and flash flooding during the afternoon and evening hours.
NFIP claims data reflects impacts across multiple zones, with Zone A recording the highest volume at 1,729 claims with an average payout of $11,242 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Zone X accounts for 318 claims averaging $12,835 and 5 inches of water depth, Zone V shows 225 claims averaging $12,461 and 3 inches of water depth, Shaded Zone X records 209 claims averaging $11,449 and 2 inches of water depth, and Unshaded Zone X logs 26 claims averaging $11,223 and 3 inches of water depth. Property owners in coastal areas and designated high-risk flood zones should pay the closest attention to these risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
11% of Worcester County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
2,189 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 4 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 654 claims and $8.0M 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.
21 NOAA storm reports from Worcester 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 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 22, 2016 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 26, 2012 |
| Hurricane Irene | Aug 26, 2011 |
| 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.
76 since 1996: 24 flash floods, 14 river or area floods and 14 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Flood | Aug 21, 2025 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 21, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 19, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 12, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 24, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 18, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 1, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 22, 2023 | $20,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
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.
Tropical Storm · Aug 21, 2025. The center of Hurricane Erin stayed several hundred miles east of the Middle Atlantic coast on August 21, 2025. However, due the extremely large size of the cyclone with an expansive wind field, tropical storm force gusts occurred over the Atlantic and Lower Maryland beaches.
Flash Flood · Jul 19, 2025. A stationary front was anchored north of the area in Pennsylvania. Deep moisture was in place to the south of the front with precipitable water values near two inches. Strong surface heating resulted in robust instability with wind shear around 25 knots, allowing for deep, slow moving, convection capable of heavy rainfall and flash flooding during the afternoon and evening hours.
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 Worcester 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.