On FEMA’s figures, Lowes Island faces less hazard damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lowes Island gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns, #166 of 253 in Virginia. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2011.
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 Lowes Island 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
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 Lowes Island’s grade
River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lowes Island, and Lowes Island’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 53% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #166 of 253 in Virginia; lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Lowes Island’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Virginia town has lower expected damage than 81% of U.S. towns; within the state, Lowes Island has more expected damage per building than 65% of Virginia towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.9M a year in losses across Lowes Island: $1.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lowes Island flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 2011
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lowes Island, from FEMA’s records: 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 89% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Lowes Island isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Loudoun County.The storms Lowes Island remembers
None of the 12 disasters declared for Loudoun County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Lowes Island itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20111 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 20191 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Loudoun County has had 12 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 Lowes Island after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lowes Island archive →Lowes Island and its neighbors
Lowes Island is 4th of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Darnestown | A+less damage than 96% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Sugarland Run | Aless damage than 93% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Cascades | Aless damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Lowes Island | B+less damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
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 Lowes Island 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.
- 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 Lowes Island
Is Lowes Island at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lowes Island has lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #166 of 253 in Virginia. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Lowes Island flood?
Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Lowes Island since 2011, $6K in all, or 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 89% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Lowes Island 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 Loudoun County, 91% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Lowes Island?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lowes Island’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Lowes Island at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Lowes Island’s rate for it is higher than 53% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lowes Island.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lowes Island’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.