506 flood insurance claims·$14.8M 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 Bartholomew County, Indiana. 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.
Riverine flooding and flash flooding from severe storms dominate the flood risks in Bartholomew County, with NOAA records detailing 39 flood events and 19 flash flood events over the last 30 years, resulting in a total of four deaths. Multi-day heavy rainfall events frequently drive this hazard, as demonstrated in April 2025 when consecutive rounds of rain totaling up to 9.5 inches caused widespread flash flooding and pushed main stem rivers to major flood stages. Another severe multi-faceted system struck the region in June 2021, producing flash flooding that resulted in a fatality.
National Flood Insurance Program records show that properties situated in high-risk Zone A face the heaviest concentration of risk, accounting for 429 claims with an average payout of $34,003 and an average recorded water depth of 19 inches. However, properties outside designated high-risk zones also experience losses; Zone X properties recorded 45 claims averaging $49,926 and an average water depth of 16 inches, while Zone X shaded properties recorded 6 claims with an average water depth of 36 inches. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located near rivers and streams within Zone A, as well as properties in shaded Zone X areas where significant localized water depths have been recorded.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
4% of Bartholomew County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
446 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 18 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 2008, with 303 claims and $12.1M paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes.
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.
24 NOAA storm reports from Bartholomew County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Indiana flood stories →
12 federal disaster declarations since 1974, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Mar 30, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | May 30, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Jan 1, 2005 |
| Snow | Dec 21, 2004 |
| Severe Storms And Tornadoes | Sep 20, 2002 |
| Blizzard Of 96 | Jan 6, 1996 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
58 since 1996: 19 flash floods and 39 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Apr 6, 2025 | — · 1 killed |
| Flash Flood | Apr 4, 2025 | $500,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 29, 2021 | $20,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 19, 2021 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 15, 2019 | $40,000 |
| Flash Flood | Feb 7, 2019 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 5, 2019 | $45,000 |
| Flood | Jun 13, 2018 | $1,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Apr 6, 2025. The final round of rain in a stretch of 4 days brought rain amounts of 2-4.5 inches of rain to central Indiana in addition to the 3-5 inches that had fallen. This led to additional widespread flash flooding and exacerbated ongoing creek and river flooding to a point that many main stem rivers ended up reaching major flood stage.
Flash Flood · Apr 4, 2025. The final round of rain in a stretch of 4 days brought rain amounts of 2-4.5 inches of rain to central Indiana in addition to the 3-5 inches that had fallen. This led to additional widespread flash flooding and exacerbated ongoing creek and river flooding to a point that many main stem rivers ended up reaching major flood stage.
Flash Flood · Jul 29, 2021. A very warm and humid air mass combined with a slowly-approaching west-to-east cold front to initiate scattered evening thunderstorms. Severe weather occurred in the most favorable environment, to the southeast of Indianapolis, wherein 3000-4000 MLCAPE, 125-175 0-3 km MLCAPE, and 100-200 effective storm relative helicity combined to form an intense, nearly-stationary QLCS. Two EF-1 tornadoes, spawned from the QL…
Flash Flood · Jun 19, 2021. A long lasting and multi faceted storm system moved through central Indiana beginning during the late afternoon hours of June 18th and continued through the evening hours with widespread damaging winds and very large hail before transitioning into a flash flooding event during the overnight hours with significant flash flooding occurring across portions of Owen and Monroe counties. Unfortunately, one person lost…
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 Bartholomew 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.