77 flood insurance claims·$1.4M paid·7 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Autauga County, Alabama. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Flash flooding from heavy rainfall events dominates the flood character of Autauga County, supported by 25 recorded flash flood events alongside standard floods, tropical storms, and tropical depressions over the last 30 years. Heavy precipitation associated with these systems frequently produces localized inundation, as seen on January 9, 2024, when up to 5 inches of rain caused flooding along the Interstate 65 corridor. Tropical systems also impact the region, including the remnants of Tropical Storm Zeta in October 2020 and Sub-tropical Storm Alberto in May 2018, which brought sustained winds, heavy rainfall, and downed trees.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims across multiple zones, with the highest volume concentrated in Zone A with 48 claims averaging a $20,914 payout and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches. Zone X accounts for 12 claims with an average payout of $5,907 and an average recorded water depth of 99 inches, while Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 8 claims with an average payout of $66,831 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Homeowners in Zone A and shaded or unshaded Zone X areas should pay close attention to local flood risks given the historical frequency of flash flooding and tropical weather systems.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
19% of Autauga County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
59 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 10 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 1990, with 17 claims and $464,945 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
10 NOAA storm reports from Autauga County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Alabama flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 22, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Jan 12, 2023 |
| Hurricane Zeta | Oct 28, 2020 |
| Hurricane Sally | Sep 14, 2020 |
| Hurricane Nate | Oct 6, 2017 |
| Hurricane Irma | Sep 8, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 23, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Apr 27, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
35 since 1996: 25 flash floods and 4 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jan 9, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 29, 2020 | — |
| Tropical Depression | May 29, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 18, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 10, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 31, 2016 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 1, 2016 | — |
| Flash Flood | Dec 25, 2015 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jan 9, 2024. A line of thunderstorms moved across Central Alabama early on January 9, bringing heavy rainfall across much of the area. Rainfall totals were highest along the Interstate 65 corridor from Birmingham to Montgomery, with up to 5 inches of rain resulting in flooding in parts of Autauga and Elmore counties. Aside from the precipitation, strong gradient winds late January 8 through the day on January 9, with gusts up…
Tropical Storm · Oct 29, 2020. Tropical cyclone Zeta developed over the Western Caribbean Sea on Saturday, October 24, and slowly moved west. The tropical storm emerged into the Southern Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday, October 27th. Zeta turned northwest and became a hurricane on Wednesday, October 28th. Zeta made landfall in southeast Louisiana late on Wednesday, then moved northeast into southwest Alabama late Wednesday night. The hurricane weaken…
Tropical Depression · May 29, 2018. Sub-tropical storm Alberto made landfall in the western Florida Panhandle Monday evening, Monday May 28th. The cyclone advanced northward into Central Alabama during the overnight hours and into Tuesday, May 29th. It was downgraded to a depression as it entered the southern counties of Central Alabama. The depression produced sustained winds of 25-35 mph across Central Alabama along with heavy rainfall. The dura…
Flash Flood · Jun 18, 2017. Thunderstorms developed during the early morning hours of June 18th across portions of south central Alabama. The convection formed along a upper trough axis that stretched from Mobile, Alabama, northeastward into northwest Georgia. The storms were slow moving due to light upper level winds near the trough axis.
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Autauga County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.