18 flood insurance claims·$170,737 paid·5 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 Hopewell city, 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.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 23 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 2003, with 6 claims and $73,617 paid, the year of Hurricane Isabel.
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.
1 NOAA storm reports from Hopewell city describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Virginia flood stories →
16 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 5 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 |
| Hurricane Irene | Aug 26, 2011 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding And Tornadoes Associated W Td Gaston | Aug 30, 2004 |
| Hurricane Isabel | Sep 18, 2003 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Jan 25, 2000 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
11 since 1996: 4 flash floods, 3 river or area floods and 2 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Flood | Oct 28, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 20, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 15, 2020 | — |
| Flood | May 18, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Oct 11, 2018 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 2, 2015 | — |
| Flood | Aug 27, 2011 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 27, 2011 | $2.5M |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Coastal Flood · Oct 28, 2025. Low pressure off the Mid-Atlantic coast combined with high pressure in Canada, resulting in a lengthy period of northeasterly onshore flow. Increasing tidal anomalies resulted in moderate to locally major tidal flooding over an extended period.
Flash Flood · Aug 20, 2021. Scattered thunderstorms associated with low pressure and a frontal boundary produced heavy rain which caused flash flooding across portions of central Virginia.
Flash Flood · Aug 15, 2020. Scattered showers and thunderstorms associated with low pressure and a frontal boundary produced heavy rain which caused flash flooding across portions of central and southeast Virginia.
Flood · May 18, 2018. Showers and thunderstorms associated with areas of low pressure along a frontal boundary produced heavy rain which caused lingering flooding across portions of central, south central, and eastern Virginia.
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 Hopewell city 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.