70 flood insurance claims·$1.7M 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 Poinsett 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 heavy thunderstorms and weather systems dominates the recorded flood history in Poinsett County, Arkansas, accounting for 35 out of 40 total flood events in the last 30 years alongside 4 standard floods and 1 tropical storm resulting in 1 death.
Recorded events include flash flooding triggered by the remnants of Hurricane Harvey in August 2017, a levee break on the Cache River near Pitts causing flash flooding in January 2024, and heavy rains from a decaying MCS in May 2024.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims across multiple zones, with Zone X recording 33 claims averaging an average $38,140 payout and an average 14 inches of recorded water depth, and Zone A recording 22 claims averaging an average $26,028 payout and an average 7 inches of recorded water depth. Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 7 claims averaging an average $36,607 payout and an average 3 inches of recorded water depth, while Zone UNKNOWN logged 8 claims averaging an average $3,893 payout and an average 1 inch of recorded water depth. Homeowners and real estate agents in both designated special flood hazard areas like Zone A and moderate-to-low risk zones like Zone X should pay close attention, given that both areas have experienced repeated flood claims and significant water depths.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
24% of Poinsett County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
29 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 9 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 9 claims and $285,803 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.
8 NOAA storm reports from Poinsett County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Arkansas flood stories →
32 federal disaster declarations since 1968, 6 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, And Tornadoes | Jun 25, 2023 |
| Severe Storms And Tornadoes | Dec 10, 2021 |
| Hurricane Laura | Aug 26, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 26, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 30, 2013 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Associated Flooding | Apr 14, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
40 since 1996: 35 flash floods and 4 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jan 29, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 22, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Feb 11, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 31, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 31, 2016 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 31, 2015 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 1, 2014 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 31, 2013 | $424,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jan 29, 2024. A levee broke on the Cache River near Pitts, Arkansas during the morning hours of January 29, 2024. Flash flooding was reported in the Pitts, Arkansas area.
Flash Flood · May 22, 2024. A decaying MCS/MCV moved through the Mid-South during the overnight/early morning hours of May 22. A slow moving cold front was stretched over the Missouri Bootheel and moisture surged northward allowing for plentiful instability. This instability collided with remnant outflow boundaries from previous convection. Peak diurnal heating hours, moisture, and enough lift caused damaging winds, large hail, and flash flo…
Flood · Feb 11, 2019. A slow moving storm system in the Lower Mississippi Valley produced heavy rain that caused flash flooding, extensive areal and river flooding of adjacent areas over portions of northeast Arkansas on February 11th.
Flash Flood · Aug 31, 2017. The remnants of Harvey tracked across the Mid-South with heavy rain and gusty winds. There were several reports of flash flooding and a few tornadoes.
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 Poinsett 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.