47 flood insurance claims·$1.6M paid·3 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 Butts 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 storms and associated heavy rainfall dominate the flood risk profile of Butts County, supported by NOAA storm event records spanning the last 30 years.
Significant historical impacts include Tropical Storm Zeta, which swept rapidly across north and central Georgia during the late evening of October 28 through the morning of October 29, 2020, producing widespread wind damage and isolated flooding. Additionally, the remains of Tropical Storm Fred moved across the region as a tropical depression on August 17, 2021, bringing rainfall amounts exceeding 4 inches in portions of northeast Georgia alongside damaging winds and tornadoes.
NFIP claim records indicate that properties situated in high-risk Zone A face the highest frequency of flooding, accounting for 30 claims with an average payout of $50,123 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. However, properties in lower-risk zones also experience impacts; Zone X recorded 16 claims with an average payout of $13,293 and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches, while Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 1 claim with an average payout of $31,922 and an average recorded water depth of 24 inches. Consequently, property owners in Zone A should pay the most attention to flood risk, while residents in Zone X and unshaded areas must also account for potential inundation.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
3% of Butts County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
31 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 2024, with 19 claims and $1.2M paid, the year of Hurricane Helene.
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.
5 NOAA storm reports from Butts County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Georgia flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 22, 2026 |
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 24, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Jan 12, 2023 |
| Hurricane Michael | Oct 9, 2018 |
| Hurricane Irma | Sep 7, 2017 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 10, 2014 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 27, 2005 |
| Tropical Storm Frances | Sep 3, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
22 since 1996: 3 flash floods and 3 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 17, 2021 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 28, 2020 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 10, 2018 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 11, 2017 | $75,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 4, 2011 | — |
| Flood | Nov 11, 2009 | $1,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Nov 10, 2009 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 21, 2008 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 17, 2021. The remains of Tropical Storm Fred moved across central and north Georgia as a tropical depression during the overnight hours through the morning producing isolated reports of damaging winds in convective bands and several tornadoes. No reports of wind damage were received outside of the stronger convective bands. Rainfall amounts exceeded 4 inches in portions of northeast Georgia, with amounts of 6 to 8 inches ob…
Tropical Storm · Oct 28, 2020. During the late evening of October 28th through the morning of October 29th, Tropical Storm Zeta swept rapidly across north Georgia producing widespread wind damage and isolated flooding across north and portions of central Georgia. Around 1.5 million customers lost electricity for some period of time, some for several days.
Tropical Storm · Oct 10, 2018. Hurricane Michael made landfall along the Florida panhandle at Mexico beach (just southeast of Panama City) on the afternoon of October 10, 2018 as a high-end Category 4 hurricane (max winds of 155 MPH). Michael then moved rapidly inland, causing widespread wind damage along its path as it swept northeast across south and central Georgia. Hurricane Michael was the first major hurricane, category 3 or higher, to di…
Tropical Storm · Sep 11, 2017. On the morning of August 30th Tropical Storm Irma developed rapidly over the eastern Atlantic Ocean, just west of the Cape Verde Islands. Tropical Irma quickly strengthened as it moved west, reaching hurricane strength by the morning of August 31st. Hurricane Irma continued to move steadily westward across the Atlantic Ocean, intensifying to category 4 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale as it approached the norther…
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 Butts 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.