Upper Kanawha Watershed
(Watershed Scale, All Risk Indicators Report)
Cumulative Flood Risk Score
90.6% Very HighRanks 4th of 33 watersheds in the state
- 3 of 9 risk indicators among the top 10% watersheds.
- 5 of 9 risk indicators among the top 20% watersheds.
Noteworthy Flood Risk Facts for Upper Kanawha Watershed
Table 1. Noteworthy Flood Risk Facts: A Cumulative Flood Risk Index of 9 flood factors reveals that Upper Kanawha Watershed ranks 4th of 33 watersheds in the state with a Cumulative Flood Risk Score of 90.6%. Below are all 9 flood risk indicators used in the risk index. Click on the More Info link for rationale and recommendations of each indicator.
| Risk Indicator | Description | More Info |
Supplementary External Links |
|---|---|---|---|
| Floodplain Length Ratio | 0.00105 miles/acre of floodplain length in miles to total community area. | Click for more information. | |
| Flood Depth Median | 1.2 feet median base flood depth. | Click for more information. | |
| Building Floodplain Count | 4,692 buildings in a high-risk flood zone. | Click for more information. | Buildings in SFHA by Watershed Building Count in SFHA by Watershed (Percent Rank Classification) |
| Building Floodway Count | 835 buildings in the regulatory floodway or main river channel. | Click for more information. | Floodway Building Count by Watershed Floodway Building Count by Watershed (Percent Rank) |
| Building Floodplain Ratio | 14.1% of floodplain buildings to total buildings. | Click for more information. | |
| Building Density | 0.50 buildings/acre density in floodplain. | Click for more information. | Building Density in SFHA by Watershed |
| Building Median Value | $41,650 median building value in floodplain. | Click for more information. | |
| Bldg. Substantial Damage Count | 351 bldgs. substantially damaged by a 1% annual chance (100-yr) flood. | Click for more information. | Building Substantial Damage Count by Watershed (1% Flood) Building Substantial Damage Count by Watershed (1% Flood) (Percent Rank) |
| Bldg. Substantial Damage Ratio | 7.5% of buildings in floodplain substantially damaged by major storm. | Click for more information. | Building Substantial Damage to Total SFHA Structures Ratio by Watershed (1% Flood) (Percent Rank) |
| Cumulative Index | 90.6% cumulative risk index score. | Click for more information. |
Flood Risk Index Scores for Upper Kanawha Watershed
Table 2. Flood Risk Index Scores: A Cumulative Flood Risk Index of 9 flood factors reveals that Upper Kanawha Watershed ranks 4th of 33 watersheds in the state with a Cumulative Flood Risk Score of 90.6%. Below are all 9 flood risk indicators used in the risk index with the indicator scores and rankings.
| Category | Flood Risk Indicator | Value for Upper Kanawha | Indicator Score (0 - 100%) |
Indicator Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Floodplain Characteristics | Floodplain Length Ratio Click for more information. | 0.00105 Miles/Acre | 50.0% | Moderate |
| Flood Depth Median Click for more information. | 1.2 Ft | 78.1% | Relatively High | |
| Floodplain Characteristics Index, 9th | 75.0% | Relatively High | ||
| Building Exposure | Building Floodplain Count Click for more information. | 4,692 | 81.2% | Very High |
| Building Floodway Count Click for more information. | 835 | 93.7% | VERY HIGH | |
| Building Floodplain Ratio Click for more information. | 14.1% | 90.6% | VERY HIGH | |
| Building Density Click for more information. | 0.50 /Acre | 96.8% | VERY HIGH | |
| Building Exposure Index, 4th | 90.6% | VERY HIGH | ||
| Building Characteristics | Building Median Value Click for more information. | $41,650 | 53.1% | Moderate |
| Building Characteristics Index, 16th | 53.1% | Moderate | ||
| Building Damage Loss | Bldg. Substantial Damage Count Click for more information. | 351 | 81.2% | Very High |
| Bldg. Substantial Damage Ratio Click for more information. | 7.5% | 59.3% | Moderate | |
| Building Damage Loss Index, 11th | 65.6% | Relatively High | ||
| Risk Index | Cumulative Index Click for more information. | 90.6% | VERY HIGH | |
Risk Index Legend
Flood Risk Indicators of Upper Kanawha Watershed Compared to Other Watersheds
Table 3. Flood Risk Index Comparison: Flood risk indicator values for Upper Kanawha Watershed compared to descriptive statistics of all watersheds.
| Category | Flood Risk Indicator | Value for Upper Kanawha | Median Value | Mean Value | Min Value | Max Value | State Stats |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Floodplain Characteristics | Floodplain Length Ratio Click for more information. | 0.00105 Miles/Acre | 0.00105 Miles/Acre | 0.00092 Miles/Acre | 0 Miles/Acre | 0.00144 Miles/Acre | 0.00111 Miles/Acre |
| Flood Depth Median Click for more information. | 1.2 Ft | 0.8 Ft | 0.8 Ft | 0.0 Ft | 2.5 Ft | 1.8 Ft | |
| Building Exposure | Building Floodplain Count Click for more information. | 4,692 | 1,992 | 2,561 | 0 | 7,989 | 82,408 |
| Building Floodway Count Click for more information. | 835 | 152 | 270 | 0 | 1,274 | 8,237 | |
| Building Floodplain Ratio Click for more information. | 14.1% | 6.0% | 7.3% | 0.0% | 21.1% | 7.4% | |
| Building Density Click for more information. | 0.50 /Acre | 0.12 /Acre | 0.17 /Acre | 0 /Acre | 0.58 /Acre | 0.16 /Acre | |
| Building Characteristics | Building Median Value Click for more information. | $41,650 | $40,600 | $38,073 | $0 | $98,500 | $38,200 |
| Building Damage Loss | Bldg. Substantial Damage Count Click for more information. | 351 | 164 | 187 | 0 | 699 | 6,493 |
| Bldg. Substantial Damage Ratio Click for more information. | 7.5% | 5.9% | 7.0% | 0.0% | 17.6% | 7.9% | |
General Information Statistics for Upper Kanawha Watershed
Table 4. General Information and comparison statistics for Upper Kanawha Watershed.
| Total Area (ACRES) |
Total Structures | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Kanawha Watershed | 333,856 | 33,347 | ||||
| STATE STATS | 15,500,454 | 1,118,761 | ||||
| WATERSHEDS STATS: | ||||||
| Median | 448,636 | 30,469 | ||||
| Mean | 469,929 | 33,897 | ||||
| Minimum | 312 (South Fork Shenandoah) |
1 (South Fork Shenandoah) |
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| Maximum | 1,474,110 (Little Kanawha) |
87,418 (Lower Kanawha) |
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Risk Indicator data last updated August 2024
