1,734 flood insurance claims·$41.9M paid·13 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 Hyde County, North Carolina. 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.
Tropical storms and hurricanes dominate the flood hazard profile of Hyde County, supported by frequent flash and coastal flooding events over the last 30 years. Recent coastal flood and storm surge events illustrate these recurring threats. In August 2025, Hurricane Erin generated damaging ocean overwash and storm surge alongside soundside flooding on Ocracoke Island. Subsequently, distant hurricanes in September 2025 produced major ocean overwash, wave runup, and long-period swells that closed Highway 12 and caused home collapses on Ocracoke Island, while a strong coastal storm combined with king tides to produce moderate to major coastal flooding in October 2025.
Property owners in Zone A face the vast majority of historical flood risk, accounting for 1,656 National Flood Insurance Program claims with an average payout of $29,910 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. While claims are significantly lower in zones like X, X_UNSHADED, V, and UNKNOWN—ranging from 6 to 42 claims with average payouts between $6,782 and $17,533 and average water depths of 1 to 8 inches—all coastal and low-lying property owners, particularly those in high-risk zones, should pay close attention to tropical and storm surge warnings.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Hyde County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
1,673 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 2019, with 508 claims and $26.6M paid, the year of Hurricane Dorian.
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.
30 NOAA storm reports from Hyde County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the North Carolina flood stories →
32 federal disaster declarations since 1988, 13 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 21, 2026 |
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 25, 2024 |
| Tropical Storm Debby | Aug 5, 2024 |
| Hurricane Ian | Sep 28, 2022 |
| Hurricane Isaias | Jul 31, 2020 |
| Hurricane Dorian | Sep 1, 2019 |
| Tropical Storm Michael | Oct 10, 2018 |
| Hurricane Florence | Sep 7, 2018 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
47 since 1996: 8 flash floods, 2 river or area floods and 9 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Flood | Sep 30, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 27, 2025 | — |
| Storm Surge/Tide | Aug 20, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 11, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 1, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Jan 9, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 8, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 31, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Coastal Flood · Sep 30, 2025. Distant Hurricanes Humberto Imelda moved well off the East Coast at the end of the month, but produced major ocean overwash and wave runup affecting Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands for several days at the end of the month and into the beginning of October due to large long period swells. Highway 12 became impassable around high tide on September 30th, and remained closed until the early evening of October 2nd. A tot…
Coastal Flood · Oct 27, 2025. A low-pressure system moved offshore and combined with high pressure to the north to produce strong northeasterly winds, which in turn brought large waves and ocean overwash to Ocracoke and Hatteras Islands from October 27-29. The resultant impacts caused five oceanfront homes to collapse, and closed sections of N.C. 12 on Hatteras and Ocracoke Island.
Storm Surge/Tide · Aug 20, 2025. Hurricane Erin made its closest approach to the North Carolina coast during the morning hours of Thursday, August 21st, 2025 as a category 2. While the center of Erin remained around 200 miles east of Cape Hatteras, Erin was so large that damaging ocean overwash and storm surge impacted Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands, and caused additional minor ocean overwash along ocean areas to the north and to the south, and mi…
Coastal Flood · Oct 11, 2025. The combination of a strong coastal storm and king tides produced moderate to major coastal flooding across parts of coastal Eastern NC. Sound side areas of the southern Pamlico Sound and Neuse River experienced coastal flooding due to a prolonged duration of strong northeast to east winds. Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands experienced major coastal flooding due to large long periods swells and king tides. Some floodi…
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 Hyde 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.