33 flood insurance claims·$1.7M paid·7 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 Bamberg County, South 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 summer thunderstorms and tropical systems dominates the flood character of Bamberg County, accounting for 11 out of 16 recorded events in the last 30 years alongside 4 tropical storms and 1 general flood. Severe weather events are driven by slow-moving storms and tropical moisture influxes, such as the flash flood events recorded in September 2024 during Tropical Storm Helene, and November 2024 when a stalled front and tropical moisture produced heavy rainfall.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood risks affect properties across multiple zones. Zone A accounts for 17 claims with an average payout of $44,323 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Zone X accounts for 14 claims with an average payout of $88,685 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Zone X unshaded accounts for 1 claim with an average payout of $59,259 and an average recorded water depth of 15 inches, while Zone X shaded has 1 claim with a $0 payout and 0 inches of recorded water depth.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties located in both designated high-risk Special Flood Hazard Areas (Zone A) and moderate-to-low risk areas (Zone X), as both zones have accumulated significant insurance claims and recorded water depths.
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 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 2024, with 14 claims and $1.4M paid, the year of Hurricane Debby, Hurricane Helene and Severe Storms and Flooding.
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 Bamberg County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the South Carolina flood stories →
28 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 21, 2026 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Nov 6, 2024 |
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 25, 2024 |
| Hurricane Debby | Aug 4, 2024 |
| Tropical Storm Debby | Aug 4, 2024 |
| Hurricane Idalia | Aug 29, 2023 |
| Hurricane Ian | Sep 25, 2022 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Feb 6, 2020 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
16 since 1996: 11 flash floods and 1 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 14, 2025 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 27, 2024 | $1.6M |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2024 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 7, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 6, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 30, 2023 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 5, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 14, 2025. A weak surface trough developed through the day, triggering scattered thunderstorm. Due to weak bulk shear and mixed layer CAPE over 3000 J/kg, just an isolated storm was able to reach severe limits and produce heavy rainfall during the day. In addition, light steering flow allowed the storm to move slow enough to produce flash flooding.
Tropical Storm · Sep 27, 2024. Tropical Storm Helene formed in the NW Caribbean Sea on September 24. Helene moved northward into the Gulf of Mexico where it strengthened into a hurricane on September 25. Helene made landfall as a major hurricane in the Big Bend area of Florida the night of September 26 before quickly moving inland into east central Georgia by early morning on September 27. Helene weakened to a strong tropical storm and produced…
Flash Flood · Sep 26, 2024. Tropical Storm Helene formed in the NW Caribbean Sea on September 24. Helene moved northward into the Gulf of Mexico where it strengthened into a hurricane on September 25. During the day on September 26, Helene remained off the coast of Florida and an upper low over the southeast US led to strong moisture transport and strong forcing over the area. Heavy rain rates and training bands led to flash flooding develop…
Flash Flood · Nov 7, 2024. Record setting rainfall occurred across portions of the southern Midlands as a stalled front and a deep plume of tropical moisture caused rain rates of over 2-4 per hour for over six hours. Hurricane Rafael in the Gulf of Mexico contributed to the influx of extremely anomalous moisture. Northern Orangeburg and western Calhoun counties received over 10 and the surrounding counties saw over 6 as training tropical do…
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 Bamberg 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.