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United States Post Office - Nettie, West Virginia - panoramioPhoto: Idawriter · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Nettie · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Nettie

Nettie isn’t graded for hazard risk: Nettie has 183 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 63 claims here since 1979.

Flood claims
63
paid since 1979 · $2.8M
Disasters paid out here
6
of 21 declared for Nicholas County
By hazard

What Nettie 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

95%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 87% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Earthquakes Hail Winter storms Ice storms Hurricanes Tornadoes Wildfire Cold waves Landslides top 5% Lightning Heat waves
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 40% of Nettie’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.1%), 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 Nettie flood? Sometimes: 63 flood claims since 1979

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

Paid flood claims, by year
1979: 2 claims1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 1 claim1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 1 claim1997: 0 claims1998: 1 claim1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 13 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 23 claims2004: 1 claim2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 21 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims200120032016
19792026
Biggest named events
  • The Summer severe storms21 claims · $1.9M
  • The Heavy rains13 claims · $306K
63
paid claims since 1979
$2.8M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$45K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Nicholas County.
Disasters

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Nettie

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

  1. 2024Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides7 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
  2. 2016Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides13 households applied for aid$5K aid approved21 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2012Severe Storms and Straight-line Winds35 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
  4. 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides4 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
  5. 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides2 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
  6. 2003Severe Winter Storm, Record/near Record Snow, Heavy Rains, Flooding and Landslides10 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in NettieNicholas County only

Nicholas County has had 21 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Nettie archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Nettie 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 Nettie

Does Nettie flood?

Flood insurance has paid 63 claims in Nettie since 1979, $2.8M in all. The most claims came from Summer severe storms (21).

Is Nettie 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 Nicholas County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Nettie?

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

By FEMA money that reached Nettie, Severe Storms and Straight-line Winds (2012): 35 households applied for aid, $8K approved. By flood claims, Summer severe storms: 21 paid, $1.9M.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Nettie.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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