10 flood insurance claims·$78,492 paid·6 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 Chilton 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 driven by severe weather systems and heavy rainfall dominates the flood risk profile in Chilton County, accounting for 15 events and 1 death over the past 30 years, alongside 4 tropical storm events and 2 tropical depression events. NOAA storm records document severe multi-day impacts, such as a slow-moving cold front producing flash flooding in March 2023, and a stationary upper low causing extensive flash flooding during the evening of October 6, 2021. Another significant flash flood event occurred on February 13, 2025, when a stalled warm front brought 3 to 4 inches of rainfall and minor flooding issues.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data reflects payouts across multiple zones. Zone A recorded 2 claims with an average payout of $22,777 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Zone X_SHADED recorded 3 claims with an average payout of $7,312 and an average water depth of 1 inch. Zone D recorded 2 claims averaging $4,329 with an average water depth of 1 inch, while Zone X recorded 2 claims averaging $2,344 with an average water depth of 1 inch. An additional claim was recorded in Zone UNKNOWN with $0 payout and 0 inches average water depth. Residents in FEMA Zone A and shaded or unshaded Zone X areas should pay the closest attention to property flood risk given the documented historical claims and flash flood frequency.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 2 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 4 claims and $31,222 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.
13 NOAA storm reports from Chilton County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Alabama flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 22, 2024 |
| Hurricane Zeta | Oct 28, 2020 |
| Hurricane Sally | Sep 14, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Apr 19, 2020 |
| Hurricane Nate | Oct 6, 2017 |
| Hurricane Irma | Sep 8, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jan 22, 2012 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Apr 27, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
21 since 1996: 15 flash floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Feb 13, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 26, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 4, 2021 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 29, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 19, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 30, 2018 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 8, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 24, 2010 | $5,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Feb 13, 2025. Severe weather was anticipated across southern parts of Central Alabama during the late evening of February 12 and into early February 13. As much of Central Alabama remained cool with cloud cover and light rainfall much of the day on February 12, a warm front became stalled over south-central Alabama and struggled to lift northward. Rainfall intensified over the Birmingham and Montgomery areas by the late evening…
Flash Flood · Mar 26, 2023. A multi-day severe weather event produced all modes of severe weather across Central Alabama. An upper low parked over the Midwest States and an upper ridge over the Florida Peninsula produced a deep layer of moisture and shear over Alabama. A slow moving surface cold front provided the focus for severe storms late Saturday night and continuing through Monday morning.
Flash Flood · Oct 4, 2021. An upper level trough just west of the Mississippi River on October 3rd become stationary and evolved into a closed upper low by October 5th. The closed upper low remained nearly stationary for 48 hours and before finally lifting northward on October 7th. This system brought a variety of severe weather across Central Alabama over a five day period, including wind damage, large hail and extensive flash flooding. Th…
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…
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 Chilton 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.