72 flood insurance claims·$847,343 paid·13 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 Jackson County, Florida. 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 frequent events dominates the flood risk profile in Jackson County, supported by additional hazards from general floods, tropical storms, and hurricanes. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 91 flash flood events, 29 floods, 16 tropical storms, and 5 hurricanes resulting in 5 deaths. Recent severe conditions are illustrated by major flash flooding in April 2024 and the inland impacts of Hurricane Helene in September 2024, which brought Category 4 conditions with 140 mph maximum sustained winds, a central pressure of 938 mb, and a storm surge exceeding 15 feet along the coast of Apalachee Bay.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data demonstrate that flood risks extend across multiple zones. Properties in Zone A experienced 39 claims with an average payout of $18,578 and an average recorded water depth of 9 inches. Meanwhile, properties in Zone X recorded 27 claims with a higher average payout of $23,531 and an average recorded water depth of 16 inches, while Zone UNKNOWN recorded 6 claims with an average payout of $3,262 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in both designated high-risk areas like Zone A and moderate-to-low risk areas like Zone X, where recorded water depths during past claims averaged over a foot.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Jackson County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
39 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 10 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 2018, with 15 claims and $185,875 paid, the year of Hurricane Michael.
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.
77 NOAA storm reports from Jackson County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Florida flood stories →
34 federal disaster declarations since 1994, 13 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 23, 2024 |
| Tropical Storm Helene | Sep 23, 2024 |
| Hurricane Debby | Aug 1, 2024 |
| Tropical Storm Debby | Aug 1, 2024 |
| Hurricane Nicole | Nov 7, 2022 |
| Hurricane Ian | Sep 23, 2022 |
| Tropical Storm Ian | Sep 23, 2022 |
| Tropical Storm Fred | Aug 13, 2021 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
141 since 1996: 91 flash floods and 29 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 26, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 18, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 15, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 14, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 10, 2024 | — |
| Flood | May 22, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 14, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Sep 26, 2024. Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph and a minimum central pressure of 938 mb (27.70 inches) at about 11:10 PM EDT on Thursday, September 26th, in Taylor County Florida just east of the Aucilla River. Helene quickly moved inland across Taylor and Madison Counties before moving into Lowndes County in South Central Georgia. The hurricane produced a devastat…
Tropical Storm · Sep 26, 2024. Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph and a minimum central pressure of 938 mb (27.70 inches) at about 11:10 PM EDT on Thursday, September 26th, in Taylor County Florida just east of the Aucilla River. Helene quickly moved inland across Taylor and Madison Counties before moving into Lowndes County in South Central Georgia. The hurricane produced a devastat…
Flash Flood · May 18, 2024. During the early morning hours of May 17th, a long lived derecho that impacted the north central Gulf coast clipped portions of Gulf and Franklin counties with significant wind gusts in excess of hurricane force measured, along with impacts to trees and power lines and minor structural damage. Later in the day and on May 18th, additional rounds of severe storms impacted the tri-state area with damage to trees and…
Flash Flood · Sep 15, 2024. Several showers and thunderstorms developed in association with the remnants of Hurricane Francine and a stalled frontal boundary. Several areas of rotation were detected, but no tornado touchdowns were reported. There was one report of a tree down in Walton county. In addition, heavy rainfall led to areas of flash flooding.
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 Jackson 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.