96 flood insurance claims·$1.4M 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 St. Clair 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 severe weather and summer thunderstorms dominates the flood history of St. Clair County, accounting for 29 out of 38 total flood events over the last 30 years alongside 1 recorded death, while standard floods, tropical storms, and tropical depressions occur less frequently. Recent NOAA records illustrate these varied threats, including a long-duration severe weather event that produced flooding from January 3 to January 4, 2023, and heavy rainfall from a stalled warm front that caused minor flooding on February 12, 2025.
Federal insurance data shows that flood risks extend beyond high-risk areas, with properties in both designated special flood hazard zones and moderate-to-low risk zones experiencing damage. Specifically, Zone A properties account for 46 claims with an average payout of $16,572 and an average recorded water depth of 5 inches. Meanwhile, Zone X properties account for 38 claims with a higher average payout of $31,376 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in Zone A and Zone X, as both areas accumulate significant claim histories and notable water depths during heavy rain and storm events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
4% of St. Clair County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
48 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 4 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 2003, with 16 claims and $168,538 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and 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.
12 NOAA storm reports from St. Clair County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Alabama flood stories →
30 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 22, 2024 |
| Hurricane Sally | Sep 14, 2020 |
| Severe Storms And Tornadoes | Mar 19, 2018 |
| 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 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 15, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
38 since 1996: 29 flash floods and 4 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Feb 12, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 4, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 4, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 2, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 30, 2022 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 29, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Feb 6, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 10, 2018 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Feb 12, 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 · Jan 4, 2023. A long-duration severe weather event occurred from the late morning hours of Tuesday, January 3rd to the early morning hours of Wednesday, January 4th. Several rounds of rain and thunderstorms impacted Central Alabama, producing tornadoes, damaging straight-line winds, quarter size hail, and flooding.
Flash Flood · Aug 4, 2023. An active northwest upper flow pattern produced several waves of convective storms during the first week of August.
Flash Flood · Jul 2, 2023. An extremely moist and unstable summertime air mass was in place across Alabama on July 1st through July 2nd with excessive heat warnings and heat advisories in effect. PWAT's were also high with values near 2 inches, which produced high values for microburst potential. Several upper short wave troughs rotated around the north side of an upper ridge centered along the Gulf Coast, and triggered numerous strong to s…
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 St. Clair 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.