16 flood insurance claims·$144,053 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 Bath County, Virginia. 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 intense storm systems and heavy rainfall dominates the flood risk profile in Bath County, accounting for 27 of the 40 recorded flood events over the last 30 years, alongside 12 general floods and 1 tropical storm.
Steep terrain and slow-moving storms frequently cause rapid rises in local waterways, as demonstrated on May 16, 2020, when a cluster of thunderstorms dropped 2 to 4 inches of rain in a few hours, with 1-hour amounts exceeding a 100-year recurrence interval. Prolonged heavy rain combined with snow pack also drives events, such as on February 28, 2021, when multiple waves along a stalled frontal boundary brought up to 3.25 inches of rain to the northern half of the county following earlier snow accumulation.
National Flood Insurance Program records show the heaviest financial and physical impacts concentrated in high-risk areas, with Zone A properties accounting for 13 claims averaging $12,004 per payout and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. Properties in Zone X and Zone X Unshaded recorded minimal impact, with a combined 3 claims and average payouts and water depths of zero. Homeowners and real estate agents with properties in Zone A or near steep terrain and stream basins should pay the closest attention to flood preparedness.
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 12 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 1996, with 9 claims and $102,981 paid, the year of Flooding, High Winds, and Wind Driven Rain and Hurricane Fran and Associated Severe Storm Cond.
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.
22 NOAA storm reports from Bath County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Virginia flood stories →
22 federal disaster declarations since 1969, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 22, 2026 |
| Hurricane Florence | Sep 13, 2018 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 26, 2012 |
| Severe Storms And Straight-line Winds | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Dec 18, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 23, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jul 8, 2001 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
40 since 1996: 27 flash floods and 12 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Feb 28, 2021 | — |
| Flood | Jun 13, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 16, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Sep 27, 2018 | $500 |
| Flood | Sep 27, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 21, 2018 | $50,000 |
| Flood | Apr 16, 2018 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Feb 28, 2021. Multiple waves of energy passing along a stalled frontal boundary near the Ohio River resulted in several rounds of prolonged and, at times, heavy rain across the northern half of Bath County. In the 48 hour period ending 10 am on the 28th, the northern half of Bath County had already received between 2 to locally 3.25 inches of rainfall from shower and thunderstorm activity. Snow pack prior to the arrival of the…
Flood · Jun 13, 2021. Slow-moving thunderstorms trained across southern Highland County, forming in an environment of CAPE exceeding 2,500 J/Kg and Precipitable Water of around 1.5 inches. The storms produced 2.5 to 4 inches of rainfall amounts over a 2 to 3-hour period, with rainfall rates at times reaching 5 to 6 inches per hour. Steep terrain in the Back Creek basin aided in creating efficient runoff to cause the stream gauge at B…
Flash Flood · May 16, 2020. A cluster of thunderstorms developed in the late evening hours of May 16th over parts of Bath County. These slow-moving storms dropped very heavy rain of 2 to 4 inches in just a few hours per radar estimates and rain gages. Some of the 1-hour rainfall amounts exceeded a 100-year recurrence interval (.01 annual chance of occurrence).
Flash Flood · Jul 15, 2019. Training of thunderstorms produced 4 to locally 6 inches of rain over a short period of time during the evening of July 15th along a portion of Little Back Creek and a few of its associated tributaries in extreme western Bath County, VA. This resulted in flooding across both Little Back Creek Road and Mountain Valley Road around where they intersect one another, temporarily closing both roads. The annual recurre…
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 Bath 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.