295 flood insurance claims·$1.9M paid·11 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 Okeechobee 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.
Tropical storms and floods drive the historical flood risk in Okeechobee County, with tropical storm events and standard floods representing the majority of recorded incidents over the last 30 years. Recent impacts are tied to major landfalling tropical systems, such as Hurricane Ian in September 2022, which crossed the Florida peninsula and brought prolonged winds and flood conditions, and Hurricane Milton in October 2024, which spawned a prolific tornado outbreak across the region from its outer rainbands.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that high-risk Zone A properties have experienced the heaviest volume of claims with 216 filings averaging a payout of $11,047 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Properties located in moderate-to-low risk zones also face exposure, notably Zone X unshaded areas with 48 claims averaging $13,870 and an average water depth of 3 inches, and standard Zone X properties recording an average water depth of 13 inches across 18 claims. Zone X shaded properties recorded 11 claims averaging $15,771 with an average water depth of 3 inches.
Homeowners and real estate professionals in Zone A and Zone X areas should pay the closest attention to flood risk given the documented historical payouts and water depths.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
21% of Okeechobee County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
275 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 5 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 2004, with 112 claims and $621,555 paid, the year of Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley, Hurricane Frances, Hurricane Ivan and Hurricane Jeanne.
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.
13 NOAA storm reports from Okeechobee County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Florida flood stories →
35 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 11 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Milton | Oct 5, 2024 |
| Hurricane Debby | Aug 1, 2024 |
| Tropical Storm Debby | Aug 1, 2024 |
| Hurricane Nicole | Nov 7, 2022 |
| Tropical Storm Nicole | Nov 7, 2022 |
| Hurricane Ian | Sep 23, 2022 |
| Tropical Storm Ian | Sep 23, 2022 |
| Hurricane Isaias | Jul 31, 2020 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
15 since 1996: 1 flash floods and 5 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm | Sep 26, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 9, 2024 | — |
| Hurricane (Typhoon) | Sep 28, 2022 | $1.4M |
| Flood | Sep 27, 2022 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Nov 9, 2022 | — |
| Tropical Depression | Nov 8, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Sep 10, 2017 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 10, 2017 | $157.0M |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Tropical Storm · Sep 26, 2024. Major Hurricane Helene paralleled the west coast of Florida about 100 miles offshore before making landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida near the city of Perry. The system's expansive wind field within its eastern periphery produced a period of tropical storm conditions, particularly in gusts, across much of east central Florida including its adjacent coastal waters. Peak wind gusts ranged between 45 - 55 mph…
Tropical Storm · Oct 9, 2024. Hurricane Milton moved ashore the west-central Florida coast as a category 3 hurricane on Oct 9 around 1930EST. The system continued slowly in an east-northeast trajectory across central Florida, becoming a category 1 hurricane before emerging into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Canaveral. The outer rainbands of Milton overspread the Florida peninsula earlier in the day, leading to a prolific tornado outbreak across…
Hurricane (Typhoon) · Sep 28, 2022. After making landfall as a major hurricane in southwest Florida near Cayo Costa, Ian crossed the peninsula and into east central Florida (southern Osceola County) as a Category 1 Hurricane with estimated maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. The system was downgraded to a tropical storm shortly thereafter and emerged into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Canaveral. Ian's slow movement and large wind field led to a long p…
Flood · Sep 27, 2022. After making landfall as a major hurricane in southwest Florida near Cayo Costa, Ian crossed the peninsula and into east central Florida (southern Osceola County) as a Category 1 Hurricane with estimated maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. The system was downgraded to a tropical storm shortly thereafter and emerged into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Canaveral. Ian's slow movement and large wind field led to a long p…
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 Okeechobee 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.