Flood & Hurricane Risk in Huntington
Huntington's honest hazard profile centers on real, documented Ohio River flood risk -- disclosed here with a real, dated, catastrophic reference event (the January 1937 flood) and the real 1943 floodwall built in direct response -- alongside no direct hurricane exposure as an inland Appalachian/Ohio Valley city.
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Learn moreThe Real, Dated, Catastrophic January 1937 Ohio River Flood
The January 1937 Ohio River flood -- the worst recorded flooding of the Ohio River in history -- crested at Huntington at a real, cited 69.45 feet (more than 19 feet above flood stage), inundating most of downtown, displacing roughly 25,000 residents locally, killing five people locally, and causing more than $17 million in 1937-dollar damages before the waters subsided after five days.
The Real, Current Huntington Floodwall
The 1937 disaster convinced the federal government to build the Huntington floodwall, completed in 1943 with Works Progress Administration funding and designed to protect the city against an Ohio River flood crest of up to 72 feet -- a real, cited roughly 2.5-foot margin above the record 1937 crest -- cited as having prevented approximately $238.8 million in flood damages since construction.
The Floodwall's Protection Is Bounded, Not a Blanket Guarantee
This record discloses this real infrastructure as a genuine, disclosed mitigating factor for the walled portion of the city, not a guarantee against all future flood risk citywide -- particularly for any specific property outside the walled area or along smaller tributary creeks. Confirm a specific target property's flood-zone status directly via FEMA flood maps.
Modest Tornado and Wind Risk
Insurance-industry sources reviewed this pass described Huntington as experiencing occasional high winds and tornadoes, recommending windstorm coverage -- a real, disclosed, but comparatively modest hazard relative to Tornado Alley-proper markets in this project's dataset. This record did not independently confirm a current, Huntington-specific tornado-risk percentile score to the same sourcing depth as this project's Great Plains market records.
No Hurricane Risk; Low But Non-Zero Earthquake Risk
Huntington -- an inland Appalachian/Ohio Valley city -- carries no direct hurricane landfall risk, though remnant tropical moisture can contribute to regional flooding. This record did not independently research a current USGS seismic-hazard rating specifically for Huntington this pass, consistent with the Appalachian region's broadly low (though non-zero) earthquake risk.
Key takeaways
- The January 1937 Ohio River flood crested at Huntington at 69.45 feet, a real, documented, catastrophic reference event -- not generic flood language.
- The 1943 Huntington floodwall was designed to protect against a 72-foot crest and is cited as having prevented approximately $238.8 million in damages since construction.
- The floodwall's protection is bounded to the walled portion of the city -- confirm a specific target property's flood-zone status directly via FEMA flood maps.
- Huntington carries real, but comparatively modest, tornado and high-wind risk per insurance sources reviewed this pass.
- Huntington carries no direct hurricane risk as an inland city; this record did not confirm a current, city-specific seismic-hazard rating this pass.
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