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Chesapeake, West VirginiaPhoto: Magnolia677 · CC BY-SA 4.0
D−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Chesapeake · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Chesapeake than almost anywhere in the U.S., mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chesapeake gets a D− for hazard risk: among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (99%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 2003.

River and rain flooding 99%

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

among the highestof U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D−
in West Virginia · among the highest of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
99% of expected building damage
Flood claims
7
paid since 2003 · $95K
Flooded more than once
1
properties
Disasters paid out here
3
of 26 declared for Kanawha County
By hazard

What Chesapeake 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

99%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hail Strong wind Earthquakes Hurricanes Tornadoes Winter storms Ice storms Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides top 3% Lightning Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingTsunamisVolcanic activity

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.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Chesapeake’s grade

River and rain flooding is 99% of the building damage FEMA expects in Chesapeake, and Chesapeake’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Chesapeake sits
Chesapeake
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D− among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Chesapeake’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding99%Everything else1%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.6M a year in losses across Chesapeake: $1.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Chesapeake’s 1,335 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Chelyan CDP (681 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Chesapeake flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 2003

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Chesapeake, from FEMA’s records: 8.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 70% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2003: 1 claim2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 1 claim2015: 0 claims2016: 2 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 2 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims200320162023
20032026
Biggest named events
  • The Summer severe storms2 claims · $9K
7
paid claims since 2003
$95K
paid to owners
1
homes flooded more than once
$14K
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

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

Insurance rates: Kanawha County.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Chesapeake

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

  1. 2024Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides1 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
  2. 2024Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides5 households applied for aid$35K aid approved
  3. 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides3 households applied for aid$24K aid approved2 flood claims paid that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ChesapeakeKanawha County only

Kanawha County has had 26 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 Kanawha County, 2001–2001.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Chesapeake archive →
Next door

Chesapeake and its neighbors

Chesapeake is 2nd of the 2 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Belle: hazard risk D−BelleChesapeake
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
BelleD−more damage than 98%river and rain flooding8
ChesapeakeD−among the highest damageriver and rain flooding7

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Chesapeake 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 Chesapeake

Is Chesapeake at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chesapeake has among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (99%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Chesapeake flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Chesapeake since 2003, $95K in all, or 8.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 70% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Summer severe storms (2).

Is Chesapeake 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 Kanawha County, 10% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.5% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Chesapeake?

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

By FEMA money that reached Chesapeake, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2024): 5 households applied for aid, $35K approved. By flood claims, Summer severe storms: 2 paid, $9K.

Is Chesapeake at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (99%), and Chesapeake’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Chesapeake.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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