57 flood insurance claims·$786,114 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 Staunton 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 and general flooding from slow-moving summer thunderstorms dominate the flood risk in Staunton city, VA, with the NOAA Storm Events Database recording 14 flash flood events and 12 flood events over the last 30 years. This risk is exemplified by conditions such as those on August 22, 2020, when Gulf of Mexico moisture combined with a stationary boundary and a light flow aloft, causing thunderstorms to train over the same areas and trigger widespread flooding.
Historical NFIP claims data indicates that properties located within Zone A face the most severe impacts, accounting for 43 claims with an average payout of $27,526 and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches. By comparison, properties in Zone X recorded 12 claims with an average payout of $8,003 and an average water depth of 1 inch, while unknown zones recorded 2 claims averaging $3,207 with a 1-inch average water depth.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties situated in Zone A, as these locations experience significantly higher claim frequencies, payouts, and average water depths during flood events compared to properties in Zone X or unknown zones.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Staunton city’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
43 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 5 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 18 claims and $241,030 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.
6 NOAA storm reports from Staunton city describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Virginia flood stories →
14 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 3 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 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Hurricane Isabel | Sep 18, 2003 |
| Hurricane Fran And Associated Severe Storm Cond | Sep 5, 1996 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
26 since 1996: 14 flash floods and 12 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Aug 22, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Aug 8, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 8, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 16, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 29, 2015 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 25, 2010 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 25, 2006 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 25, 2006 | $10,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Aug 22, 2020. Plenty of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico combined with a boundary to trigger showers and thunderstorms. A light flow aloft that was nearly unidirectional caused some showers and thunderstorms to train over the same areas, which led to instances of flooding and flash flooding.
Flood · Aug 8, 2020. Slow moving storms developed along a pressure trough in central Virginia, resulting in instances of flooding and flash floodint.
Flash Flood · Aug 8, 2020. Slow moving storms developed along a pressure trough in central Virginia, resulting in instances of flooding and flash floodint.
Flash Flood · Jun 16, 2017. A warm front moved northward across the Mid-Atlantic region and southerly flow transported moisture into the region. Breaks in sunshine led to increased instability and showers and thunderstorms formed and produced very heavy rain that led to 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 Staunton 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.