4,968 flood insurance claims·$80.6M 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 Beaufort 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 and coastal flooding from tropical systems and severe weather dominate the historical flood record in Beaufort County, South Carolina. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 43 flash flood events, 32 coastal flood events, and 28 tropical storm events, alongside hurricanes, storm surges, and general floods. Recent events illustrate these hazards, such as coastal flooding driven by strong northeast winds, inland high pressure, offshore low pressure, and astronomical influences during a full moon and perigee in October 2025. Additionally, slow-moving thunderstorms interacting with a weak cold front and deep moisture caused heavy rainfall and flash flooding in August 2025.
Federal insurance data underscores the financial impact across different zones. Zone A accounts for the vast majority of National Flood Insurance Program claims with 3,845 filings averaging $23,334 and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. Zone X recorded 566 claims with an average payout of $46,238 and an average recorded water depth of 14 inches. Zone X unshaded had 234 claims averaging $28,812 with an average water depth of 3 inches, while Zone V saw 184 claims averaging $27,950 with an average depth of 15 inches. Zone X shaded recorded 135 claims averaging $22,160 with an average water depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners and real estate agents managing properties in high-risk coastal zones, high-claim areas like Zone A, and moderate-to-low risk areas such as Zone X should pay the closest attention to these diverse flood risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
8% of Beaufort County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
4,398 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 2016, with 2,698 claims and $55.4M paid, the year of Hurricane Matthew.
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.
29 NOAA storm reports from Beaufort County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the South Carolina flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 21, 2026 |
| 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 |
| Hurricane Dorian | Aug 31, 2019 |
| Hurricane Florence | Sep 8, 2018 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
114 since 1996: 43 flash floods, 4 river or area floods and 35 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 16, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 10, 2025 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 26, 2024 | $110,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 6, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Aug 5, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 5, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 5, 2024 | — |
| Storm Surge/Tide | Aug 30, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 16, 2025. A weak cold front encountering deep moisture led to slow moving thunderstorms capable of producing heavy rainfall across Southeast South Carolina.
Coastal Flood · Oct 10, 2025. Strong northeast winds resulting from high pressure inland and developing low pressure offshore along with astronomical influences associated with a recent full moon and perigee led to coastal flooding along coastal Southeast South Carolina.
Tropical Storm · Sep 26, 2024. Helene first developed into a tropical storm in the northwest Caribbean Sea in the late morning of September 24, and strengthened into a hurricane near the Yucatan peninsula about 24 hours later. Helene continued to strengthen and became a major hurricane as it moved to the north-northeast across the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Helene made landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida in the late evening hours of Septemb…
Flash Flood · Aug 6, 2024. Debby first developed into a tropical storm about 100 miles west-southwest of Key West, Florida late afternoon on August 3rd, then gradually strengthened to a strong tropical storm while tracking north across the eastern Gulf of Mexico on August 4th. Debby then reached hurricane force strength late on August 4th about 100 miles west-northwest of Tampa, before continuing a north-northeast track across the eastern G…
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 Beaufort 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.