9 flood insurance claims·$148,394 paid·3 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 Calhoun County, Arkansas. 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.
Standard river flooding and localized flash flooding from heavy rainfall characterize the flood hazards in Calhoun County, backed by 51 flood events and 33 flash flood events recorded over the last 30 years alongside occasional tropical storms and depressions. Recent historical events illustrate these recurring conditions, such as multiday heavy rainfall in April 2025 that brought flooding to multiple rivers across Arkansas, including the Ouachita River, and minor river flooding along the Ouachita River at Thatcher Lock and Dam that included a crest in early January 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that claims have occurred across multiple zones. Properties in Zone A averaged 4 claims with an average payout of $10,921 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Properties in unshaded Zone X recorded 4 claims with an average payout of $36,789 and an average recorded water depth of 0 inches, while Zone X recorded 1 claim with an average payout of $5,263 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located near rivers and within designated flood zones where historical river overflows and flash floods have directly impacted local structures.
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 2013, with 3 claims and $90,565 paid.
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.
28 NOAA storm reports from Calhoun County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Arkansas flood stories →
22 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 2, 2025 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 30, 2023 |
| Hurricane Laura | Aug 26, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Mar 8, 2016 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Associated Flooding | Apr 14, 2011 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Dec 23, 2009 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
90 since 1996: 33 flash floods and 51 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | May 27, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 24, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Apr 5, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Feb 3, 2025 | — |
| Flood | May 1, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jun 1, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jan 1, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Dec 29, 2024 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · May 27, 2025. River flooding was noted along the Spring, White, Fourche LaFave, Arkansas, and Ouachita Rivers.
Flash Flood · Sep 24, 2025. A stationary front across northern Arkansas and an approaching outflow boundary from the northwest led to the development of an MCS which led many areas receiving rainfall via training and multiple accounts of flash flooding.
Flood · Apr 5, 2025. Heavy rainfall over a multiday period brought flooding to many rivers across Arkansas. Points along the White, Black, Cache, and Ouachita Rivers remained in flood through the remainder of the month.
Flood · Feb 3, 2025. River flooding was observed along portions of the Ouachita, Petit Jean, Fouche LaFave, Black, White, and Cache Rivers during the early portion of February.
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 Calhoun 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.