136 flood insurance claims·$2.2M 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 Crawford 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.
Flash flooding driven by heavy rainfall dominates the local flood profile, accounting for 48 of the 64 recorded flood events over the last 30 years, alongside 16 general flood events. Recent documented events include a historically strong low pressure system that brought heavy rainfall and strong winds in March 2023, and repeated rounds of excessive rainfall totaling 8 to 9 inches across southern Indiana in February 2018, which led to significant river rises and numerous flash flood reports including road closures. Remnants of Tropical Storm Gordon also produced efficient, flash-flood-inducing rainfall in September 2018.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate the heaviest concentration of claims occurs in Zone A with 91 claims averaging a $21,210 payout and an average recorded water depth of 9 inches. An additional 35 claims are cataloged in Zone UNKNOWN, averaging a $9,584 payout with an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Properties located in Zone A and unmapped or unknown zones should pay the closest attention to flood preparedness, given the heavy concentration of historical claims and flash flood events driven by regional storms and tropical remnants.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
6% of Crawford County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
97 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 8 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 1990, with 48 claims and $676,874 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding.
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.
12 NOAA storm reports from Crawford County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Indiana flood stories →
21 federal disaster declarations since 1974, 4 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 And Flooding | Feb 14, 2018 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And | Apr 19, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 26, 2009 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Sep 12, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Jan 1, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
64 since 1996: 48 flash floods and 16 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Mar 3, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 25, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 24, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 8, 2018 | $2,000 |
| Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | $4.0M |
| Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 28, 2017 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Mar 3, 2023. On March 3rd, 2023, a historically strong low pressure system moved across the lower Ohio Valley, bringing heavy rainfall, severe weather, and most notably, very strong gradient winds as it moved across the region. On the synoptic scale, a shortwave upper-level trough located over the mid-Mississippi Valley became negatively tilted during the morning hours of March 3rd. A 120 knot 500 mb jet developed across centr…
Flash Flood · Aug 18, 2020. While on the western side of an upper trough, a surface low with associated fronts moved south through southwest Indiana. This produced heavy rainfall with localized flooding in a few Indiana counties.
Flash Flood · Sep 25, 2018. On September 25th a saturated air mass was in place ahead of an advancing cold front, with precipitable water values near two inches. With this air mass and shear ahead of the cold front, convective showers formed over southern Indiana and advanced east along Interstate 65 causing flooding issues in the system's path.
Flash Flood · Feb 24, 2018. Repeated rounds of moderate to heavy rainfall across the entire Ohio River basin totaled between 8 to 9 inches across southern Indiana from February 15 to February 28. These totals were generally 7+ inches, or 200 to 400% of normal values for mid to late February. The large areal extent of the excessive rainfall led to significant rises on area rivers, including the Ohio River. This resulted in numerous flash floo…
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.