Flood Risk Comparison Report

(All Scales in Jefferson County)

For comparison, this report summarizes the Cumulative Flood Risk Index as well as individual flood factors in seven major risk categories for Jefferson County.

July 2025

Flood Risk Index Comparison

Table 1. Flood Risk Index: Below is a comparison of the Cumulative Flood Risk Index for all entities in Jefferson County.

Table 1a: County Total

#	State Index Rank	County	CUMULATIVE FLOOD RISK INDEX
#	State Index Rank	County	Index Score	Index Rating
48	Jefferson View on Map	12.9%	Very Low

Table 1b: Incorporated Places

#	State Index Rank	Incorporated Place	County	CUMULATIVE FLOOD RISK INDEX
#	State Index Rank	Incorporated Place	County	Index Score	Index Rating
1	100	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	Jefferson	56.5%	Moderate
2	126	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	Jefferson	45.1%	Moderate
3	173	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	Jefferson	24.5%	Relatively Low
4	182	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	Jefferson	20.6%	Relatively Low
5	189	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	Jefferson	17.5%	Very Low

Table 1c: Unincorporated Area

#	State Index Rank	Unincorporated Area	CUMULATIVE FLOOD RISK INDEX
#	State Index Rank	Unincorporated Area	Index Score	Index Rating
1	40	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	27.7%	Relatively Low

Risk Index Legend

VERY HIGH: 90% - 100%

Very High: 80% - 100%

Relatively High: 60% - 79.9%

Moderate: 40% - 59.9%

Relatively Low: 20% - 39.9%

Very Low: 0% - 19.9%

Cumulative Flood Risk Index Map for Jefferson

Floodplain Characteristics Comparison

Table 2. Floodplain Characteristics: Below is a comparison of 4 flood factors under the Floodplain Characteristics category in Jefferson.

Table 2a: County Total

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Floodplain Characteristics				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Floodplain Area	Floodplain Length	Flood Declared Disasters	Flood Depth Median	CATEGORY SCORE
1	39	Jefferson View on Map	9,010 Acres	162.5 Miles	12	2.4 Ft	29.6%

Table 2b: Incorporated Places

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Floodplain Characteristics				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Floodplain Area Ratio	Floodplain Length Ratio	Flood Declared Disasters	Flood Depth Median	CATEGORY SCORE
1	55	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	18.5%	0.00762 Miles/Acre	12	26.4 Ft	75.8%
2	174	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	8.5%	0.00291 Miles/Acre	12	2.0 Ft	24.1%
3	180	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	0.4%	0.00151 Miles/Acre	12	17.6 Ft	21.4%
4	205	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	5.3%	0.00159 Miles/Acre	12	0.8 Ft	10.0%
5	219	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	3.5%	0.00060 Miles/Acre	12	0.4 Ft	4.3%

Table 2c: Unincorporated Area

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Floodplain Characteristics				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Floodplain Area	Floodplain Length	Flood Declared Disasters	Flood Depth Median	CATEGORY SCORE
1	26	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	8,535 Acres	152.0 Miles	12	4.7 Ft	50.0%

Building Exposure Comparison

Table 3. Building Exposure: Below is a comparison of 4 flood factors under the Building Exposure category in Jefferson.

Table 3a: County Total

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Building Exposure				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Building Floodplain Count	Building Floodway Count	Building Floodplain Ratio	Building Density	CATEGORY SCORE
1	48	Jefferson View on Map	499	33	1.7%	0.06 /Acre	12.9%

Table 3b: Incorporated Places

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Building Exposure				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Building Floodplain Count	Building Floodway Count	Building Floodplain Ratio	Building Density	CATEGORY SCORE
1	90	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	76	0	10.3%	3.45 /Acre	60.9%
2	130	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	50	2	1.7%	0.28 /Acre	43.4%
3	147	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	31	0	11.2%	0.42 /Acre	35.9%
4	149	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	21	4	0.6%	0.11 /Acre	35.0%
5	167	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	4	0	0.0%	4.00 /Acre	27.1%

Table 3c: Unincorporated Area

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Building Exposure				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Building Floodplain Count	Building Floodway Count	Building Floodplain Ratio	Building Density	CATEGORY SCORE
1	47	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	317	27	1.6%	0.04 /Acre	14.8%

Building Characteristics Comparison

Table 4. Building Characteristics: Below is a comparison of 6 flood factors under the Building Characteristics category in Jefferson.

Table 4a: County Total

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Building Characteristics						CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Building Median Value	Bldg. Mobile Homes Ratio	Bldg. Subgrade Basements Ratio	Building 1-Story Ratio	Bldg. Year Pre-FIRM Ratio	Bldg. Year Minus Rated Post-FIRM Ratio	CATEGORY SCORE
1	24	Jefferson View on Map	$97,450	13.6%	49.5%	64.0%	71.1%	9.4%	57.4%

Table 4b: Incorporated Places

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Building Characteristics						CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Building Median Value	Bldg. Mobile Homes Ratio	Bldg. Subgrade Basements Ratio	Building 1-Story Ratio	Bldg. Year Pre-FIRM Ratio	Bldg. Year Minus Rated Post-FIRM Ratio	CATEGORY SCORE
1	116	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	$213,800	0.0%	45.5%	16.7%	92.4%	1.3%	49.5%
2	125	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	$63,350	13.3%	37.5%	90.0%	67.5%	0.0%	45.6%
3	136	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	$188,000	0.0%	90.3%	3.2%	100.0%	0.0%	40.7%
4	172	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	$67,500	0.0%	63.0%	37.0%	77.8%	0.0%	25.0%
5	186	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	$0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%

Table 4c: Unincorporated Area

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Building Characteristics						CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Building Median Value	Bldg. Mobile Homes Ratio	Bldg. Subgrade Basements Ratio	Building 1-Story Ratio	Bldg. Year Pre-FIRM Ratio	Bldg. Year Minus Rated Post-FIRM Ratio	CATEGORY SCORE
1	20	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	$93,150	15.5%	48.9%	71.5%	66.7%	14.5%	62.9%

Critical Infrastructure Comparison

Table 5. Critical Infrastructure: Below is a comparison of 2 flood factors under the Critical Infrastructure category in Jefferson.

Table 5a: County Total

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Critical Infrastructure		CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Essential Facilities	Roads Inundated Ratio	CATEGORY SCORE
1	51	Jefferson View on Map	0	4.4%	7.4%

Table 5b: Incorporated Places

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Critical Infrastructure		CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Essential Facilities	Roads Inundated Ratio	CATEGORY SCORE
1	115	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	0	31.6%	50.0%
2	160	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	0	7.5%	29.8%
3	168	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	0	5.9%	26.7%
4	197	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	0	0.9%	14.0%
5	206	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	0	0.1%	10.0%

Table 5c: Unincorporated Area

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Critical Infrastructure		CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Essential Facilities	Roads Inundated Ratio	CATEGORY SCORE
1	47	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	0	4.6%	14.8%

Community Assets Comparison

Table 6. Community Assets: Below is a comparison of 2 flood factors under the Community Assets category in Jefferson.

Table 6a: County Total

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Community Assets		CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Community Assets Historical	Community Assets Non-Historical	CATEGORY SCORE
1	22	Jefferson View on Map	120	12	59.2%

Table 6b: Incorporated Places

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Community Assets		CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Community Assets Historical	Community Assets Non-Historical	CATEGORY SCORE
1	24	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	48	4	89.4%
2	45	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	29	1	80.7%
3	47	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	14	1	79.8%
4	49	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	3	1	78.9%
5	120	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	0	1	25.8%

Table 6c: Unincorporated Area

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Community Assets		CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Community Assets Historical	Community Assets Non-Historical	CATEGORY SCORE
1	22	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	26	4	61.1%

Building Damage Loss Comparison

Table 7. Building Damage Loss: Below is a comparison of 4 flood factors under the Building Damage Loss category in Jefferson.

Table 7a: County Total

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Building Damage Loss				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Bldg. Substantial Damage Count	Bldg. Substantial Damage Ratio	Bldg. Previous Damage Claims	Bldg. Repetitive Loss Structures	CATEGORY SCORE
1	26	Jefferson View on Map	120	24.0%	163	66	53.7%

Table 7b: Incorporated Places

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Building Damage Loss				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Bldg. Substantial Damage Count	Bldg. Substantial Damage Ratio	Bldg. Previous Damage Claims	Bldg. Repetitive Loss Structures	CATEGORY SCORE
1	54	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	24	77.4%	11	2	76.7%
2	123	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	1	1.3%	2	0	46.4%
3	132	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	0	0.0%	20	6	42.5%
4	161	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	1	0.0%	0	0	29.8%
5	181	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	0	0.0%	3	0	20.1%

Table 7c: Unincorporated Area

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Building Damage Loss				CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Bldg. Substantial Damage Count	Bldg. Substantial Damage Ratio	Bldg. Previous Damage Claims	Bldg. Repetitive Loss Structures	CATEGORY SCORE
1	16	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	94	29.7%	127	58	72.2%

People / Social Vulnerabilities Comparison

Table 8. People / Social Vulnerabilities: Below is a comparison of 3 flood factors under the People / Social Vulnerabilities category in Jefferson.

Table 8a: County Total

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	People / Social Vulnerabilities			CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	County	Population in Floodplain Ratio	Population Displaced Ratio	WV Social Vulnerability Index	CATEGORY SCORE
1	54	Jefferson View on Map	2.1%	1.4%	0.0%	1.8%

Table 8b: Incorporated Places

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	People / Social Vulnerabilities			CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Incorporated Place	Population in Floodplain Ratio	Population Displaced Ratio	WV Social Vulnerability Index	CATEGORY SCORE
1	168	Shepherdstown - Incorporated View on Map	11.2%	3.4%	1.8%	26.7%
2	175	Harpers Ferry - Incorporated View on Map	4.8%	4.8%	3.1%	23.6%
3	187	Ranson - Incorporated View on Map	2.7%	1.7%	7.0%	18.4%
4	202	Charles Town - Incorporated View on Map	0.9%	0.5%	0.9%	11.8%
5	207	Bolivar - Incorporated View on Map	0.5%	0.2%	0.4%	9.6%

Table 8c: Unincorporated Area

#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	People / Social Vulnerabilities			CATEGORY SCORE
#	STATE CATEGORY RANK	Unincorporated Area	Population in Floodplain Ratio	Population Displaced Ratio	WV Social Vulnerability Index	CATEGORY SCORE
1	54	Jefferson County* - Unincorporated View on Map	2.0%	1.4%	1.9%	1.8%

Risk Indicator data last updated August 2024