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 Crawford 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.
Crawford County is primarily vulnerable to flooding driven by tropical systems and heavy convective rainfall, as reflected by 15 tropical storm events and 14 combined flood and flash flood events recorded over the last 30 years.
Recent history illustrates these localized hazards. In September 2020, the remnants of Tropical Storm Sally brought 2 to 8 inches of rainfall across central Georgia, triggering flash floods. More recently, in September 2024, Hurricane Helene tracked inland and delivered widespread rainfall totals between 6 and 14 inches alongside severe wind gusts, compounding the county's flood risks from major tropical weather systems.
Property owners and real estate professionals should pay the closest attention to these recurring inland threats, particularly homes located near rivers, streams, and low-lying areas susceptible to rapid water accumulation during severe tropical remnants and heavy multi-inch rain events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
14 NOAA storm reports from Crawford County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Georgia flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1966, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 22, 2026 |
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 24, 2024 |
| Hurricane Michael | Oct 9, 2018 |
| Hurricane Irma | Sep 7, 2017 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Dec 22, 2015 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 10, 2014 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Sep 18, 2009 |
| Severe Storms And Tornadoes | May 11, 2008 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
31 since 1996: 7 flash floods and 7 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm | Sep 27, 2024 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Oct 6, 2021 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 28, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 17, 2020 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 17, 2020 | $20,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 10, 2018 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 11, 2017 | $100,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 4, 2011 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Tropical Storm · Sep 27, 2024. Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in the Big Bend region of Florida at 11 PM EDT. Helene moved quickly inland bringing wind gusts between 50 and 100 mph to portions of east and central Georgia. Widespread rainfall totals between 6 and 14 inches were observed in association with Helene across north and central Georgia. The highest rainfall amounts were primarily observed in portions of east-c…
Flash Flood · Oct 6, 2021. A very moist and marginally unstable airmass ahead of a deep upper-level low over the lower Mississippi Valley resulted one report of a tree down and several flash flooding reports over middle Georgia. Heavy rainfall amounts of 1.5 to 3 inches were observed along a line from Thomaston to Gray to Eatonton to Comer, with pockets of higher amounts between 4 and 8 inches.
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.
Flash Flood · Sep 17, 2020. A weakening Tropical Storm Sally moved into Georgia on September 16th, spreading heavy rainfall amounts and producing damaging winds in north and central Georgia. Rainfall amounts of 2 to 8 inches occurred, with the axis of heaviest rainfall extending from near Columbus, to Macon, to Augusta. The highest winds were observed in the metro Atlanta area as Sally's convective bands moved through late on September 16th.
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 Crawford 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.