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Anawalt, West VirginiaPhoto: Magnolia677 · CC BY 4.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Anawalt · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Anawalt

Anawalt isn’t graded for hazard risk: Anawalt has 109 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 9 claims here since 1978.

Flood claims
9
paid since 1978 · $40K
Flooded more than once
2
properties
Disasters paid out here
10
of 22 declared for McDowell County
By hazard

What Anawalt 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

98%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Strong wind Hurricanes Hail Tornadoes Wildfire Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides top 4% Lightning Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 20% of Anawalt’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Flood insurance claims

Does Anawalt flood? Rarely: 9 flood claims since 1978

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Anawalt, from FEMA’s records.

Paid flood claims, by year
1978: 1 claim1979: 0 claims1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 2 claims2003: 2 claims2004: 1 claim2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 1 claim2008: 1 claim2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 1 claim197820022003
19782026
Biggest named events
  • Tropical Storm Ivan1 claim · $4K
9
paid claims since 1978
$40K
paid to owners
2
homes flooded more than once
$4K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Anawalt isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: McDowell County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
12flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters

10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Anawalt

Disasters that paid out in Anawalt itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Anawalt), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2025Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides34 households applied for aid$253K aid approved
  2. 2012Severe Storms and Straight-line Winds9 households applied for aid$656 aid approved$945 to the Town of Anawalt for repairs
  3. 2010Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Landslides32 households applied for aid$81K aid approved$936 to the Town of Anawalt for repairs
  4. 2009Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Landslides6 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
  5. 2004Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides9 households applied for aid$18K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
  6. 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides52 households applied for aid$153K aid approved
Show all 10
  1. 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides2 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
  2. 2003Severe Winter Storm, Record/near Record Snow, Heavy Rains, Flooding and Landslides4 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
  3. 2002Severe Storms, Flooding and Landslides$1K to the Town of Anawalt for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
  4. 2001Severe Storms, Flooding and Landslides$133K to the Town of Anawalt for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in AnawaltMcDowell County only

McDowell County has had 22 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in McDowell County, 2001–2001.

Were you here?

Old photos of Anawalt after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Anawalt archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Anawalt faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Anawalt

Does Anawalt flood?

Flood insurance has paid 9 claims in Anawalt since 1978, $40K in all. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Ivan (1).

Is Anawalt 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 McDowell County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 4.6% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Anawalt?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Anawalt’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 Anawalt?

By FEMA money that reached Anawalt, Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2025): 34 households applied for aid, $253K approved. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Ivan: 1 paid, $4K.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Anawalt.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Anawalt’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.