9 flood insurance claims·$1.1M 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 Marion 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 and heavy rainfall dominates the flood history of Marion County. Over the last 30 years, NOAA records show 38 flash flood events resulting in 1 death, alongside 4 standard floods, 2 tropical storms, and 2 tropical depressions.
Recent events illustrate these severe conditions. In April 2025, severe weather brought multiday flash and river flooding driven by half a foot to over a foot of rain. Another dangerous event occurred in July 2024, when a slow-moving cold front dropped 4 to 9 inches of rain in a short timeframe, causing significant flash flooding.
NFIP insurance claims data reflects risk across different zones. Zone A recorded 7 claims with an average payout of $253,764 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Zone X unshaded recorded 1 claim with an average payout of $97,323 and an average recorded water depth of 78 inches. Zone X shaded recorded 1 claim with an average payout of $0 and an average recorded water depth of 0 inches. Property owners in designated high-risk flood zones and those in areas prone to deep, rapid inundation should pay the closest attention to these risks.
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 28 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 2024, with 5 claims and $1.0M paid, the year of Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, 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.
18 NOAA storm reports from Marion County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Arkansas flood stories →
28 federal disaster declarations since 1969, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 2, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 24, 2024 |
| Hurricane Laura | Aug 26, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 26, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 7, 2015 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Dec 5, 2013 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
46 since 1996: 38 flash floods and 4 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Apr 4, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Dec 31, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 17, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 4, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 13, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 29, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 11, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 17, 2016 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Apr 4, 2025. Severe weather, including widespread flash flooding occurred over a five day period across the entire state. This multiday event featured tornadoes, damaging winds, and very large hail. But by far and large, flash flooding and river flooding were the biggest impacts taken away from this unsettled period of weather due to total rainfall amounts between half a foot to over one foot in many locations.
Flood · Dec 31, 2024. Heavy rains led to river flooding on the White River at Clarendon in late December.
Flash Flood · Jul 17, 2024. A slow moving cold front, located near the Arkansas and Missouri borders, set the stage for a dangerous flood event to unfold on the night of the 16th into the morning of the 17th across north-central into central portions of Arkansas. Rainfall amounts of 4 to 9 inches were measured. This much rain in a relatively short amount of time lead to flash flooding, some of which was significant.
Flash Flood · Nov 4, 2024. A cold front became a stationary front and stalled out across northern Arkansas leading to significant rainfall totals across northern Arkansas which led to numerous reports of flash flooding and significant rainfall totals.
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 Marion 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.