536 flood insurance claims·$4.7M paid·9 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 Randolph County, West 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.
Flooding in Randolph County is characterized by a nearly even mix of longer-duration riverine flooding and rapid flash flooding, with flash floods accounting for two recorded deaths over the last 30 years. NOAA storm records document widespread flooding events driven by advancing low-pressure systems and heavy rainfall, such as those that occurred in January 2025 and February 2025, which caused local creeks and streams to spill out of their banks alongside high water issues in low-lying areas and backed-up culverts.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that historical claims span multiple zones, led by 309 claims in Zone A with an average payout of $10,833 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Properties in Zone X accounted for 143 claims averaging $8,763 with an average recorded water depth of 3 inches, while 83 claims with an unknown zone designation averaged $12,897 and a 4-inch average water depth. Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 1 claim averaging $5,847 with a 4-inch average water depth. Residents in designated high-risk riverine areas (Zone A) and low-lying spots prone to rapid stream overflow or backed-up culverts should pay the most attention to these flood risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Randolph County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
310 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 4 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 1996, with 264 claims and $2.5M paid, the year of Flooding, Flooding, Heavy Winds and Hurricane Fran and Associated Heavy Rains,flooding Highwind.
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.
58 NOAA storm reports from Randolph County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the West Virginia flood stories →
22 federal disaster declarations since 1967, 9 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Jun 29, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Jul 28, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Jun 22, 2016 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 29, 2012 |
| Severe Storms | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Severe Storms And Straight-line Winds | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Dec 18, 2009 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
81 since 1996: 38 flash floods and 43 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Jan 31, 2025 | $150 |
| Flood | Jan 31, 2025 | $1,500 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 30, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Feb 6, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Apr 3, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jan 9, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Apr 3, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 9, 2023 | $200 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Jan 31, 2025. An advancing low pressure system set forth ample amounts of lift and moisture to round out the month of January. Widespread rainfall first entered into the southwestern coalfields of West Virginia on the morning of January 31st, and continued to invade northeastward and up into the higher terrain of the state. Local creeks and streams quickly spilled out of their banks on that day in conjunction with high water is…
Flash Flood · Jul 30, 2025. The final few days of July featured a cold front slowly approaching West Virginia and stalling overhead. While much of the area remained dry on July 30th, showers and thunderstorms formed along the mountains and made little progress during the afternoon. Scattered activity spread farther west into the lowlands during the evening and then fizzled out overnight. The next round of showers and storms developed along t…
Flood · Feb 6, 2025. Showers first entered into West Virginia on the evening of February 5th as a disturbance skirted by to the south. Precipitation continued into the next day, in addition to a few severe thunderstorms that developed ahead of a cold front in the early afternoon. Strong wind gusts from storms caused numerous downed trees and power line damage across Boone and Lincoln Counties during the early afternoon of February 6th…
Flood · Apr 3, 2025. A line of showers and thunderstorms followed a warm front across the Middle Ohio Valley and Central Appalachians during the morning of April 3rd. A cold front brought more precipitation into the area the night of the 3rd and then stalled over West Virginia through the morning of the 4th. Showers continued in the vicinity of the boundary which slid to the south on the afternoon of the 4th before being lifted north…
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 Randolph 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.