61 flood insurance claims·$678,151 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 Union 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.
Flash flooding and tropical storm impacts from heavy rainfall events dominate the flood history of Union County. Over the last 30 years, NOAA records show 22 flash flood events, 14 tropical storm events, 9 general flood events, and 3 hurricane events.
Recent weather history illustrates these risks. In September 2024, Tropical Storm Helene brought widespread heavy rainfall to Georgia following its Category 4 landfall in Florida. Earlier, in August 2023, thunderstorms fueled by tropical moisture from Hurricane Idalia produced torrential rainfall and flash flooding. Another significant flash flood event occurred in March 2021, driven by a moist, unstable airmass that dropped 2.5 to 8 inches of rain across north Georgia.
FEMA National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood risks affect properties across different designated zones. Zone A properties have experienced the vast majority of local claims, totaling 58 claims with an average payout of $16,689 and an average recorded water depth of 11 inches. Zone X properties have recorded 3 claims with an average payout of $5,297 and an average recorded water depth of 0 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents with properties in Zone A should pay the closest attention to flood risk and mitigation.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Union County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
58 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 11 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 2020, with 15 claims and $142,237 paid, the year of Tropical Storm Zeta.
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.
25 NOAA storm reports from Union County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Georgia flood stories →
16 federal disaster declarations since 1990, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 22, 2026 |
| Hurricane Helene | Sep 24, 2024 |
| Tropical Storm Zeta | Oct 29, 2020 |
| Hurricane Irma | Sep 7, 2017 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Dec 22, 2015 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 10, 2014 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 27, 2005 |
| Hurricane Ivan | Sep 14, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
48 since 1996: 22 flash floods and 9 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Tropical Storm | Sep 27, 2024 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 29, 2023 | $40,000 |
| Flash Flood | Mar 25, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 29, 2020 | $25,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Oct 28, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Apr 13, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Apr 13, 2020 | $15,000 |
| Flood | Apr 13, 2020 | $20,000 |
— = 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 · Aug 29, 2023. Thunderstorms formed along a stationary boundary located draped across west-central and northwest GA on the 28th and 29th. Significant tropical moisture ahead of Hurricane Idalia led to several thunderstorms becoming strong to severe. The main hazards included damaging winds and torrential rainfall.
Flash Flood · Mar 25, 2021. A very moist and moderately unstable airmass over the region combined with strong shear and persistent southwesterly mid and upper flow produced numerous showers and thunderstorms across north and parts of central Georgia through the day on the 25th into the morning of the 26th. Numerous reports of flooding were received with several reports of severe thunderstorms and a few isolated tornadoes. Rainfall amounts of…
Flash Flood · Oct 29, 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.
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 Union 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.