Tunnell-West House · Photo: Smallbones · CC0For coastal flooding, Ocean View’s building-damage rate is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Ocean View gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns, #20 of 37 in Delaware. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (49%), then hurricanes (38%). Flood insurance has paid 18 claims here since 1998.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What stands out about Ocean View’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Ocean View faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Hurricanes
Coastal flooding
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Ocean View’s grade
River and rain flooding is 49% of the building damage FEMA expects in Ocean View, and Ocean View’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 79% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 10%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
B #20 of 37 in Delaware; lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Ocean View’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Delaware town has lower expected damage than 65% of U.S. towns; within the state, Ocean View has more expected damage per building than 53% of Delaware towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.3M a year in losses across Ocean View: $1.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Ocean View flood? Sometimes: 18 flood claims since 1998
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Ocean View, from FEMA’s records: 6.8 per 1,000 homes, more than 66% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Sandy7 claims · $88K
Ocean View isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Sussex County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Ocean View
Disasters that paid out in Ocean View itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Ocean View), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$8K to the Town of Ocean View for repairs7 flood claims paid for it, $88K
- 2011Hurricane Irene$9K to the Town of Ocean View for repairs
- 2010Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorms$8K to the Town of Ocean View for repairs
- 2003Hurricane Isabel2 households applied for aid$4K to the Town of Ocean View for repairs
- 2003Snow$1K to the Town of Ocean View for repairs
Sussex County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Ocean View after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Ocean View archive →Ocean View and its neighbors
Ocean View is 2nd of the 2 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Millville | B+less damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Ocean View | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 18 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Ocean View faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
- Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
- Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Ocean View
Is Ocean View at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Ocean View has lower expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #20 of 37 in Delaware. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (49%) and hurricanes (38%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Ocean View flood?
Flood insurance has paid 18 claims in Ocean View since 1998, $164K in all, or 6.8 per 1,000 homes, more than 66% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Sandy (7).
Is Ocean View in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Sussex County, 61% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 12.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Ocean View?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Ocean View’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Ocean View?
By FEMA money that reached Ocean View, Hurricane Irene (2011): $9K to the Town of Ocean View for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Sandy: 7 paid, $88K.
Is Ocean View at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (49%), and Ocean View’s rate for it is lower than 79% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Ocean View.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Ocean View’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.