370 flood insurance claims·$6.2M 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 James City 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 and coastal flooding equally dominate the flood history of James City County, with each hazard accounting for 17 events over the last 30 years according to the NOAA Storm Events Database, alongside lesser impacts from general floods, hurricanes, and tropical storms.
Recent occurrences illustrate these risks. On July 31, 2025, slow-moving convection driven by a frontal boundary and atmospheric instability produced heavy rainfall and flash flooding during the late afternoon and evening. Separately, a coastal low interacting with high pressure to the north generated prolonged northeast winds and widespread coastal flooding on October 12, 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that properties in Zone A have experienced the highest volume of claims at 290, with an average payout of $19,004 and an average recorded water depth of 5 inches. Meanwhile, properties in Zone X have accounted for 76 claims with an average payout of $26,204 and an average recorded water depth of 9 inches. Consequently, homeowners and real estate agents managing properties in designated high-risk zones, as well as those near coastal waters and areas susceptible to intense summer convective rainfall, should pay the closest attention to local flood risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of James City County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
291 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 6 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 150 claims and $3.5M 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.
18 NOAA storm reports from James City County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Virginia flood stories →
18 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 22, 2026 |
| Tropical Storm Michael | Oct 9, 2018 |
| Hurricane Florence | Sep 13, 2018 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 26, 2012 |
| Hurricane Irene | Aug 26, 2011 |
| Tropical Depression Ernesto, Severe Storms And Flooding | Aug 29, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Hurricane Isabel | Sep 18, 2003 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
46 since 1996: 17 flash floods, 5 river or area floods and 17 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 31, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 12, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 1, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Nov 15, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 4, 2024 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 1, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 28, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 31, 2025. A front was located north of the region and gradually moved south in response to an approaching mid level disturbance. To the south of the front, robust heating of a moist low level airmass resulted in increasing instability by the afternoon and evening hours. Strong, slow moving, convection resulted in areas of strong winds, heavy rainfall, and flash flooding during the late afternoon and evening.
Flash Flood · Aug 18, 2025. Moisture and instability pooled along a nearly stationary frontal boundary across southeast Virginia on August 18. Slow-moving showers and storms trained over the lower Virginia Peninsula region, with flash flooding occurring in the late afternoon and evenings hours.
Coastal Flood · Oct 12, 2025. A coastal low formed off of the Southeast coast on October 11 and slowly tracked north into October 13 before moving offshore. Meanwhile, a strong 1035mb area of high pressure lingered over the Gulf of Saint Lawrence. This resulted in a prolonged period of strong northeast to north winds across the Chesapeake Bay and coastal waters, which allowed for widespread moderate to major coastal flooding across eastern Vir…
Coastal Flood · Oct 1, 2025. Hurricanes Humberto and Imelda were located well offshore of the Eastern Seaboard on October 1, with high pressure over the Great Lakes and southern Canada. The combination of elevated winds and long-period swell led to coastal flooding. A few locations along the Virginia tidal rivers reached moderate flood stage from later October 1 into early October 3.
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 James City 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.