38 flood insurance claims·$917,169 paid·7 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 Cedar County, Iowa. 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 from summer thunderstorms and general flooding dominate the historical record in Cedar County, Iowa, with NOAA records detailing 17 flash flood events and 15 general flood events over the last 30 years. Heavy rainfall falling on already saturated soils frequently triggers these events, as demonstrated on May 29, 2019, when a storm complex produced heavy rain that closed many roads, and on August 12, 2016, when widespread rainfall totals of 2 to 5 inches—with higher amounts of 5 to 7 inches—resulted in flash flooding.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that high-risk Zone A properties have experienced the highest claim frequency with 30 claims averaging $24,629 with an average recorded water depth of 5 inches. Meanwhile, lower-frequency zones have seen severe individual impacts, such as Zone X_UNSHADED properties averaging $98,809 per claim across 2 claims with an average recorded water depth of 75 inches, and Zone X properties averaging $74,942 across 3 claims with an average recorded water depth of 25 inches. Zone X_SHADED recorded 2 claims averaging $0 with an average water depth of 3 inches, and an unknown zone recorded 1 claim averaging $2,144 with an average depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in Zone A due to the high volume of claims, as well as properties in unshaded Zone X areas where lower-frequency events have resulted in significantly higher average payouts and greater average water depths.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
12% of Cedar County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
34 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 10 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 2014, with 10 claims and $268,835 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and 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.
8 NOAA storm reports from Cedar County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Iowa flood stories →
18 federal disaster declarations since 1974, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 20, 2024 |
| Severe Storms | Aug 10, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 26, 2014 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 21, 2013 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 17, 2013 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 25, 2008 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Dec 10, 2007 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 23, 2007 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
32 since 1996: 17 flash floods and 15 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 29, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 6, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Sep 27, 2016 | $250,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 12, 2016 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 15, 2015 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 11, 2015 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 29, 2014 | — |
| Flood | Jun 23, 2014 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 29, 2019. An upper level low moved over Iowa, sparking some showers and thunderstorms during the late afternoon and evening. Some of the storms spawned some funnel clouds and weak tornadoes. The storm complex then expanded and produced heavy rain. These heavy rains fell on completely saturated soils, and produced a round of significant flash flooding, which closed many roads.
Flash Flood · Oct 6, 2018. Thunderstorms with heavy rain moved over the same areas through the early morning hours in eastern Iowa and northwest Illinois. A band of 2 to 4 inches of rain fell on already saturated soils, causing a stripe of flash flooding from Keokuk County through Clinton County, and Stephenson County in northwest Illinois.
Flood · Sep 27, 2016. Significant record to near record heavy rainfall in North Central and Northeast Iowa from 21 to 23 September of 4 to over 10 plus inches caused major river flooding on many forecast points on the Iowa tributaries of the Wapsipinicon, Cedar, lower Iowa, and Maquoketa rivers. Then major river flooding occurred downstream on the Mississppi River from the Iowa River and Mississippi River convergence and south.
Flash Flood · Aug 12, 2016. Widespread showers and thunderstorms developed late in the evening of August 11th and continued overnight into August 12th along and ahead of a cold front that moved southeastward across Iowa. These showers and thunderstorms produced very heavy rainfall across eastern Iowa. Widespread rainfall totals of 2 to 5 inches were common across eastern Iowa with some higher amounts of 5 to 7 inches falling within 20 miles…
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 Cedar 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.