59 flood insurance claims·$1.3M paid·4 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 Lee 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.
Flash flooding from severe weather events dominates the flood history of Lee County, Arkansas, accounting for nine of the sixteen recorded flood events over the last thirty years, alongside seven general flood events.
Recent occurrences illustrate these risks. On January 3, 2023, a warm front and approaching cold front brought severe thunderstorms and flash flooding to the area. Similarly, on April 13, 2022, showers and thunderstorms organized into a line across the Mid-South, producing locally heavy rain that caused flooding. Heavy rainfall over saturated soils also resulted in flooding on February 28, 2021, following a stalled warm front that produced heavy rain and flash flooding on March 17, 2021.
Homeowners and real estate agents should pay the most attention to properties in unshaded Zone X and Zone A. NFIP claims data shows that unshaded Zone X recorded 25 claims with an average payout of $44,972 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Zone A accounted for 24 claims with an average payout of $12,353 and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. Shaded Zone X, unknown zones, and Zone X recorded fewer claims with lower average payouts and recorded water depths between 0 and 2 inches.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
55% of Lee County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
53 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 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 2022, with 12 claims and $393,699 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.
5 NOAA storm reports from Lee County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Arkansas flood stories →
18 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 2, 2025 |
| Hurricane Laura | Aug 26, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Associated Flooding | Apr 14, 2011 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 27, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Mar 18, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
16 since 1996: 9 flash floods and 7 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jan 3, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 13, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Feb 28, 2021 | — |
| Flood | Mar 17, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 24, 2020 | $25,000 |
| Flood | Apr 18, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Apr 13, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Feb 21, 2018 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jan 3, 2023. A warm front lifted northward off the Gulf Coast, causing rapid moisture transport to the Mid-South. In addition, an upper-level trough and associated cold front approached the area. This led to showers in the afternoon and then severe thunderstorms that continued through the overnight hours. Damaging wind, hail, tornadoes, and flash flooding were the result.
Flash Flood · Apr 13, 2022. A shortwave moved into the Lower Mississippi Valley triggering numerous showers and thunderstorms across Arkansas during the morning hours of April 13, 2022. Storms eventually organized into a line that swept across the Mid-South. A strong low-level jet, large amounts of wind shear, and moderate amounts of instability supported severe thunderstorms across the Mid-South. Large hail, damaging wind and tornadoes were…
Flood · Feb 28, 2021. A cold front pushed into an unstable and very moist airmass to produce numerous showers and thunderstorms north of Interstate 40 during the afternoon of February 28th. Storms eventually evolved into a line and pushed southeast across the Mid-South. A few severe storms occurred. Heavy rainfall over already saturated soils resulting in some flash flooding.
Flood · Mar 17, 2021. A slow-moving warm front lifted north into the Mid-South during the morning hours of March 17th with numerous showers and thunderstorms. Heavy rain produced some flash flooding and there were a couple of severe weather reports along with a couple of damaging lightning strikes. The front stalled across the area during the day with southern parts of the Mid-South, especially northeast Mississippi, becoming quite uns…
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 Lee 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.