Virginia Flood Awareness

3/13/2020 (Permalink)

Flooding doesn’t only occur near a river or coastline — anywhere it can rain, it can flood.

Virginia Flood Awareness Week encourages Virginians to learn about their flood risk and protect the life they’ve built with flood insurance.

Remember these facts:

Floods are the most common and costly natural disaster in our country

90 percent of all presidential declarations of emergency and major disasters involve flooding

About 200 Americans lose their lives in floods each year

On average, flood damages throughout the nation annually exceed $3 billion, and as of January 31, 2019, flood insurance claims in Virginia totaled more than $730 million

Both direct and indirect costs of flood recovery are borne by all American taxpayers, not just flood victims

Virginia has 2.3 million acres of mapped special flood hazard areas, which represents 9 percent of Virginia's land mass

Only 3 percent of Virginians statewide are covered by flood insurance

Only 31 percent of people who live in a special flood hazard area have flood insurance

Floods can happen without warning and all Virginians should know their risk

Citizens can view mapped special flood hazard areas on the Virginia Flood Risk Information System available on the website of the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, the lead state agency responsible for administering flood-related programs

The Virginia Department of Emergency Management produces important public information on flood risk and response