157 flood insurance claims·$2.2M paid·3 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 Hocking County, Ohio. 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.
River flooding and flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominate the flood risk in Hocking County, Ohio. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 75 standard flood events and 40 flash flood events, including 1 flash flood death. A typical severe event occurred when a cold front sagged into the Ohio Valley and stalled out in July 2025, producing heavy rainfall, runoff, and flooding from showers and thunderstorms developing in a saturated environment.
Federal disaster insurance data shows that properties in designated high-risk areas bear the brunt of historical damage. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reports that Zone A properties experienced 120 claims with an average payout of $18,833 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. Properties in Zone X accounted for 18 claims with an average payout of $24,316 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches, while Zone UNKNOWN recorded 13 claims averaging $1,643 with an average water depth of 2 inches. Zone X_SHADED recorded 6 claims with an average payout of $9,757 and an average water depth of 3 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within Zone A, which exhibit the highest concentration of insurance claims and the deepest average recorded water depths during flood events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
5% of Hocking County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
126 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 10 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 2004, with 30 claims and $218,144 paid, the year of Severe Storms and Flooding and Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides.
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.
9 NOAA storm reports from Hocking County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Ohio flood stories →
18 federal disaster declarations since 1968, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslide | May 27, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Landslides | Feb 5, 2019 |
| Severe Storms | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Severe Storms And Straight-line Winds | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Apr 4, 2011 |
| Severe Wind Storm Associated With Tropical Depression Ike | Sep 14, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides | Dec 22, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
115 since 1996: 40 flash floods and 75 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 30, 2025 | $20,000 |
| Flood | Apr 4, 2025 | — |
| Flood | May 3, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jul 1, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 1, 2025 | — · 1 killed |
| Flood | Mar 24, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jan 12, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Aug 21, 2022 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jun 30, 2025. Scattered thunderstorms developed in a warm and humid airmass.
Flood · Apr 4, 2025. Widespread showers and thunderstorms occurred across the region as waves of low pressure moved east along a frontal boundary that was stalled out along the Ohio River.
Flood · May 3, 2025. A stalled stationary front sparked showers and thunderstorms that produced heavy rainfall.
Flood · Jul 1, 2025. A cold front sagged down into the Ohio Valley region and eventually stalled out. This boundary was the focus for showers and thunderstorms to develop in a saturated environment, producing heavy rainfall, runoff, and flooding.
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 Hocking 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.