129 flood insurance claims·$2.3M paid·4 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 Petersburg 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.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates the flood history of Petersburg city, Virginia, backed by 37 recorded flash flood events over the last 30 years alongside river flooding, coastal flooding, tropical storms, and hurricanes. Historical NOAA storm data illustrates this threat, such as the slow-moving storms and heavy rainfall of 2-4 inches that produced widespread flash flooding in two rounds between July 14 and July 15, 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records demonstrate that properties in high-risk Zone A face the most severe financial impact, accounting for 78 claims with an average payout of $34,853 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. Meanwhile, properties in Zone X recorded 24 claims with an average payout of $3,698 and an average recorded water depth of 74 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents in Zone A and Zone X should pay the closest attention to these flood risks given the historical payout and water depth data associated with these zones.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
15% of Petersburg city’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
92 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 14 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 1999, with 19 claims and $124,817 paid, the year of Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations.
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.
16 NOAA storm reports from Petersburg city describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Virginia flood stories →
17 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 4 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.
44 since 1996: 37 flash floods, 3 river or area floods and 2 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Flood | Oct 28, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2025 | $165,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2025 | $4.8M |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2025 | $60,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2025 | $30,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 14, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 14, 2025 | $15,000 |
— = 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 · Jul 15, 2025. A moist and unstable air mass was in place from July 14 through July 15. This allowed for widespread, slow-moving storms to move across portions of central, southern, and southeastern Virginia. These storms produced heavy rain and widespread flash flooding in two rounds. One round was from overnight convection on the night of July 14 into the morning of July 15 and the other round was during the afternoon of July…
Flash Flood · May 14, 2025. A broad trough was in place across the eastern CONUS, resulting in isolated afternoon and evening storms with locally heavy rainfall.
Flash Flood · Jul 14, 2025. A weak frontal boundary sagged south toward the area during the afternoon/evening. Scattered to numerous thunderstorms initially developed to the north (near that boundary) and also to the west along higher terrain. The environment ahead of the boundary was characterized by very weak deep-layer flow and anomalously high PW values on the order of 2.1-2.2, leading to slow-moving storms with very heavy rainfall.
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 Petersburg 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.