Is Orangeburg County, SC in a flood zone?
FEMA's National Risk Index puts Orangeburg County's flood hazard at the 75.8th percentile nationally — a middling flood hazard by national standards — driven by inland rivers and flash flooding rather than the coast — FEMA's model puts a flood event here at about once every 1 years. That's a county-wide figure, not a per-address one — FEMA's parcel maps are a live lookup, not a bulk file.
Mandatory flood insurance compliance in Orangeburg County
Out of 577 homes FEMA counts inside Orangeburg County's mapped flood zone, 119 carry the flood policy federal law requires there — 20.6% compliance, short of full coverage. Across all residential structures in Orangeburg County, not just the ones FEMA mandates, 0.5% carry an NFIP policy — most flood damage nationally happens outside the mapped high-risk zone, so that broader number matters too.
How Orangeburg County compares nationally
Orangeburg County sits at rank 796 of 3144 counties on FEMA's flood hazard scale (1 is worst) and rank 704 of 3144 by population (1 is biggest). About 83,129 people live in Orangeburg County, South Carolina, spread over 1,106.379 square miles.
What to do next if you own or are buying in Orangeburg County
Across all of Orangeburg County's 38,181 residential structures, 187 carry an NFIP policy today — a county-wide count that still can't tell you one address's own mapped zone.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly which FEMA and Census tables feed Orangeburg County's numbers. The guide to what the Special Flood Hazard Area actually means explains why the mandatory-insurance rule exists and who it applies to.