662 flood insurance claims·$17.2M 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 Vigo 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.
River floods and flash flooding from slow-moving summer thunderstorms dominate the flood history of Vigo County, with NOAA records detailing 97 standard flood events and 36 flash flood events over the last 30 years. Heavy multi-day rainfall and slow storm motion frequently drive this threat, as demonstrated when thunderstorms produced isolated flash flooding from Terre Haute to Indianapolis in August 2022, and when heavy rainfall totals reached 3 to 5 inches near Blackhawk in August 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that risk extends across multiple zones. Zone A carries the heaviest burden with 559 historical claims averaging a payout of $28,265 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. Properties located outside traditionally mapped high-risk areas also face exposure; Zone X_UNSHADED properties recorded 41 claims with an average payout of $35,017 and an average water depth of 18 inches, while Zone X properties logged 35 claims averaging $30,666 with an average depth of 8 inches. Zone X_SHADED recorded 17 claims averaging $28,722 with a 5-inch average depth, and Zone UNKNOWN recorded 10 claims averaging $5,801 with an average water depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners and real estate agents in Zone A and Zone X_UNSHADED should pay the closest attention to these flood risks, given the high frequency of claims and significant average water depths recorded in those areas.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
9% of Vigo County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
617 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 12 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 460 claims and $14.7M 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.
28 NOAA storm reports from Vigo County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Indiana flood stories →
16 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 5, 2014 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | May 30, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Jan 1, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jul 4, 2003 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes And Flooding | Apr 28, 2002 |
| Winter Storm 12/23/98 | Jan 1, 1999 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
133 since 1996: 36 flash floods and 97 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 4, 2025 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 4, 2025 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 29, 2022 | $3,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 19, 2021 | $50,000 |
| Flood | Mar 18, 2021 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 1, 2021 | $25,000 |
| Flood | Oct 21, 2020 | $1,000 |
| Flood | Jul 11, 2020 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 4, 2025. During the late afternoon and early evening of the 4th, slow moving thunderstorms produced heavy rainfall and flooding to portions of west-central and southwest central Indiana. Flooding was most significant in southeastern Vigo County near Blackhawk where a video showed flash flooding of a field and nearby road. Later in the day, flash flooding also occurred in Daviess County and Lawrence County with two major…
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 · Aug 29, 2022. An upper trough and associated cold front slowly approached central Indiana, focusing the transport of deep moisture into the region. Several rounds of strong thunderstorms impacted much of the area from late afternoon on the 29th into the early morning of the 30th. Mean tropospheric wind as low as 15 knots promoted slow storm motion, which led to locally heavy 1-day rainfall totals and isolated flash flooding f…
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 Vigo 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.