137 flood insurance claims·$2.1M 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 Union 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 dominates the flood character of Union County, accounting for 62 of the 69 total recorded flood events over the last 30 years, alongside 5 general floods and 2 tropical storms. NOAA storm records illustrate this hazard, noting severe weather driven by warm, moist air masses and frontal boundaries, such as flash flood events occurring in April and September 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data demonstrates that flood risks extend across multiple zones within the county. Zone A recorded the highest impact with 74 claims, an average payout of $16,505, and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. Moderate risk areas also experience significant activity, including 32 claims in Zone X_SHADED with an average payout of $11,726 and an average water depth of 1 inch, 15 claims in Zone X_UNSHADED with an average payout of $7,332 and an average water depth of 1 inch, 12 claims in Zone X with an average payout of $104,704 and an average water depth of 1 inch, and 4 claims in Zone UNKNOWN with an average payout of $18,977 and an average water depth of 1 inch.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within high-risk Zone A, while recognizing that properties in all shaded and unshaded Zone X variants also carry documented insurance claim histories.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
39% of Union County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
121 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 1991, with 31 claims and $388,048 paid, the year of Severe Storms & 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.
39 NOAA storm reports from Union County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Arkansas flood stories →
20 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 |
| Hurricane Laura | Aug 26, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Oct 29, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 27, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Feb 5, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Feb 14, 2001 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
69 since 1996: 62 flash floods and 5 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Apr 26, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 24, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 5, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 15, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Apr 9, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 12, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 11, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 2, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Apr 26, 2025. The approach of an upper trough over the Southern Plains on April 26th helped to reinforce a weak cold front southeast into Southeast Oklahoma, Southwest Arkansas, and Northeast Texas during the late afternoon through the evening hours. Warm and humid air south of the front contributed to enhanced instability, with large scale forcing and adequate wind shear resulting in the development of scattered strong to seve…
Flash Flood · Sep 24, 2025. A pre-frontal surface trough extended out in advance of a weak cool front over Western Arkansas and Southeast Oklahoma during the early morning hours of September 24th, with adequate forcing aloft associated with an upper level disturbance that ejected northeast ahead of an upper level trough entering the Southern Plains. A south-southwesterly low level flow yielded increased moisture and instability ahead of this…
Flash Flood · Apr 5, 2025. A stationary front extended across portions of Northeast Texas and Southwest Arkansas during the early morning hours on April 4th, but lifted north into Southeast Oklahoma and Western Arkansas during the day. This was in response to an intensifying low level jet that developed ahead of a large upper trough that extended from the Intermountain West into the Plains, which provided the necessary lift across the very…
Flash Flood · Mar 15, 2024. Strong and deep convection became widespread over the Ark-La-Tex and downstream portions of southern Arkansas on March 15th. This occurred along an outflow boundary on the southwestern flank of a decaying MCS, and a favorable environment encouraged increased training over several hours. The mesoscale environment was characterized by ML CAPE of 1000-2000 J/kg, PWATs of 1.5-1.8 inches, and deep layer shear of 30-50…
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 Union 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.