40 flood insurance claims·$642,095 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 Baker County, Georgia. 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 storm and riverine flood events drive the primary flood hazards in Baker County, shaped by 9 tropical storms, 7 floods, 4 flash floods, and 2 hurricanes recorded over the last 30 years, resulting in 1 recorded flood death.
Recent events illustrate these risks, including severe thunderstorms that brought flash flooding to the region in March 2024, followed by heavy rainfall and flash flooding from a major system in April 2024. In September 2024, Hurricane Helene impacted the broader area following its Category 4 landfall in Florida.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate the highest risk is concentrated in Zone A, which accounts for 33 claims with an average payout of $20,980 and an average recorded water depth of 16 inches. By contrast, Zone X properties experienced fewer impacts, with 6 claims averaging $1,886 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Homeowners and real estate agents with properties located in Zone A should pay the closest attention to flood risk and mitigation requirements.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Baker County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
33 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 14 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 1998, with 15 claims and $195,589 paid, the year of Severe Storms 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.
19 NOAA storm reports from Baker County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Georgia flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1966, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 24, 2024 |
| Hurricane Michael | Oct 9, 2018 |
| Hurricane Irma | Sep 7, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jan 21, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Jan 2, 2017 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Dec 22, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Mar 26, 2009 |
| Severe Storms And Tornadoes | Mar 1, 2007 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
22 since 1996: 4 flash floods and 7 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm | Sep 26, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 10, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 9, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Nov 10, 2022 | $3,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 16, 2021 | $3,000 |
| Hurricane (Typhoon) | Oct 10, 2018 | $50.0M |
| Flood | Dec 4, 2018 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 10, 2017 | $100,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
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 · Apr 10, 2024. A major flash flood event occurred across portions of the Florida big bend and southern Georgia during the late night hours of April 10th through the early morning hours of April 11th. Between 6 and 10 inches of rain fell with localized higher amounts, particularly over Tallahassee. This resulted in rapid water rises across Tallahassee with numerous cars and structures flooded. Several million dollars in flood…
Flash Flood · Mar 9, 2024. A line of thunderstorms moved through the tri-state area ahead of a cold front. Severe weather and flash flooding accompanied this line, mainly across southeast Alabama and southwest Georgia, although a few trees were also blown down in northwest Florida. One tornado was reported in Dale County, AL, and another tornado briefly occurred in northeast Leon County, FL extending into Jefferson county, FL.
Tropical Storm · Nov 10, 2022. Tropical Storm Nicole moved across the Florida Peninsula and turned northwestward, moving across the Florida Big Bend into southern Georgia. Wind and rain impacts were relatively minimal. No flooding was reported, and wind damage consisted mainly of a few trees down with sporadic power outages.
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 Baker 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.