6 flood insurance claims·$80,643 paid·6 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 Montgomery 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.
Flash flooding from severe weather events dominates the flood history of Montgomery County, supported by 34 recorded flash flood events out of 49 total flood-related incidents over the last 30 years, alongside seven standard floods, four tropical storms, and four hurricanes.
Recent impacts are documented in NOAA storm narratives. In September 2021, a plume of tropical moisture combined with a strong cold front to produce clusters of showers and thunderstorms that caused multiple instances of flash flooding across the region. Additionally, moisture drawn northward from Tropical Storm Eta in November 2020 resulted in widespread rainfall totals generally ranging from 4 to 6 inches, causing numerous floods.
Historical National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates payouts occurred in both moderate-to-low risk and high-risk areas. Properties in Zone X recorded four claims with an average payout of $15,055 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Properties in Zone A recorded two claims with an average payout of $20,423 and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents in both designated high-risk zones and moderate-to-low risk areas should pay attention to these flood risks, as claims demonstrate that property damage occurs across multiple zone types.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 2 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 2015, with 2 claims and $32,073 paid.
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.
12 NOAA storm reports from Montgomery County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the North Carolina flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 6 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.
49 since 1996: 34 flash floods and 7 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm | Sep 30, 2022 | $750,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 22, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 12, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Sep 17, 2018 | $617,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 15, 2018 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 15, 2018 | $500,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 11, 2018 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Oct 8, 2016 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Tropical Storm · Sep 30, 2022. Hurricane Ian made landfall along the South Carolina coast near Georgetown during the early afternoon hours of September 30, 2022. Widespread wind gusts over tropical storm force and heavy rainfall occurred across much of central North Carolina through the afternoon and evening hours. There were numerous reports of wind damage and power outages as a result of the storm.
Flash Flood · Sep 22, 2021. Several clusters of showers and thunderstorms moved across the western Piedmont and western Sandhills as a plume of tropical moisture advected into the area from the south in advance of a strong cold front. This resulted in multiple reported of flash flooding from heavy rain across portions of the southern Piedmont and western Sandhills, along with a severe wind gust in Chatham County.
Flash Flood · Nov 12, 2020. Moisture from Tropical Storm Eta was drawn northward into the Mid Atlantic during the day of Wednesday November 11th. Meanwhile, a slow moving cold front approached the area and made its way through central North Carolina during the day Thursday, resulting in widespread showers and isolated thunderstorms. Rainfall totals were generally in the 4 to 6 inches range, although some spots near Rocky Mount saw close to 1…
Flood · Sep 17, 2018. A ridge of high pressure over eastern North America stalled Florence's forward motion a few miles off the southeast North Carolina coast on September 13th. Hurricane Florence made landfall near Wrightsville Beach early on Saturday September 15, and weakened further as it moved slowly inland. Despite making landfall as a weakened|Category 1 hurricane, Florence still produced 40 to 70 mph wind gusts, enough wind sp…
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 Montgomery 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.