54 flood insurance claims·$162,735 paid·3 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 Spotsylvania 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 general flooding from summer storms dominate the flood history of Spotsylvania County, supported by 36 flood events and 29 flash flood events recorded over the last 30 years, alongside lesser impacts from tropical storms and storm surge.
Recent events illustrate this pattern. In June 2025, a stalled frontal boundary and moist airmass produced localized rainfall amounts of one to five inches from training thunderstorms. In July 2025, similar tropical moisture and training thunderstorms brought two to locally six inches of rain, causing widespread flooding and flash flooding. Tropical Storm Isaias in August 2020 also brought heavy rainfall of two to four inches near Interstate 95, leading to numerous incidents of flooding and flash flooding.
NFIP claims data reflects risk across different zones. Zone X recorded 41 claims with an average payout of $6,652 and an average recorded water depth of 27 inches. Zone A recorded 11 claims with an average payout of $5,193 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Zone UNKNOWN recorded 2 claims with an average payout of $0 and an average recorded water depth of 0 inches. Residents in Zone X and Zone A should pay the closest attention to flood risk given the documented historical claims in these areas.
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 17 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 $15,286 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.
15 NOAA storm reports from Spotsylvania County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Virginia flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1969, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 22, 2026 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 2, 2022 |
| Hurricane Florence | Sep 13, 2018 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 22, 2016 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 26, 2012 |
| Earthquake | Aug 23, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorms | Feb 5, 2010 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Dec 18, 2009 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
68 since 1996: 29 flash floods, 36 river or area floods and 1 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 18, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 14, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Aug 5, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 24, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Aug 24, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Aug 13, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Nov 12, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Aug 6, 2020 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 18, 2025. An anomalously moist tropical airmass resided over Virginia bringing numerous rounds of showers and thunderstorms. Thunderstorms trained over portions of central Virginia bringing rainfall amounts of two to locally six inches. This resulted in instances of flooding and flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Jun 14, 2025. A weak area of low pressure interacted with an anomalously moist airmass and stalled frontal boundary. This spawned showers and thunderstorms that resulted in localized amounts of one to five inches of rain. The higher amounts were where storms trained or stalled.
Flood · Aug 5, 2022. Slow moving thunderstorms led to isolated instances of flooding.
Flash Flood · Aug 24, 2020. A few storms led to isolated instances of flooding.
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 Spotsylvania 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.