16 flood insurance claims·$333,766 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 Miller 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.
Miller County experiences a flood risk profile dominated equally by tropical storms and flash floods, with 11 events recorded for each type over the last 30 years, alongside two hurricanes and two general floods. Recent historical impacts include a major flash flood event from April 2024 that brought heavy rainfall and rapid water rises across portions of southern Georgia, as well as the inland passage of Hurricane Helene in September 2024.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates varying risk levels across property zones. Zone A accounts for nine claims with an average payout of $23,537 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Properties categorized under Zone UNKNOWN recorded three claims averaging $14,950 with an average water depth of 8 inches, while Zone X recorded a single claim with a payout of $91,736 and an average water depth of 18 inches. Zone X_UNSHADED recorded three claims with an average payout of $4,443 and an average recorded water depth of 0 inches.
Homeowners and real estate agents with properties located in Zone A and Zone UNKNOWN, as well as those with properties experiencing significant average water depths like those in Zone X, should pay the closest attention to these flood risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 7 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 2009, with 5 claims and $124,739 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds.
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.
18 NOAA storm reports from Miller County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Georgia flood stories →
14 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 3 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, Flooding, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Mar 26, 2009 |
| Severe Storms And Tornadoes | Mar 1, 2007 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 27, 2005 |
| Hurricane Ivan | Sep 14, 2004 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Feb 14, 1998 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
26 since 1996: 11 flash floods and 2 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm | Sep 26, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 10, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 4, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Nov 10, 2022 | $3,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 16, 2021 | $3,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 6, 2019 | — |
| Hurricane (Typhoon) | Oct 10, 2018 | $250.0M |
— = 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 · May 4, 2024. Scattered thunderstorms developed in an environment of sufficient instability and shear for a few storms to become severe. Reports of damaging wind gusts and hail occurred. In addition, slow moving storms across Miller county resulted in some flooded roadways.
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 Miller 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.