120 flood insurance claims·$4.1M paid·11 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 Louisa 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.
River flooding from regular flood events paired with flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates Louisa County, with the NOAA Storm Events Database recording 57 flood events and 27 flash flood events, including 1 flash flood death, over the last 30 years. Recent flash flooding has been driven by slow-moving thunderstorm complexes and mesoscale convective systems, such as the event on July 25, 2025, which brought up to 3.25 inches of rain reported by trained spotters in Louisa and Muscatine Counties, and a similar system on July 20, 2025, that produced 1 to 3 inches of rain and caused flash flooding across Washington, Louisa, and Muscatine Counties.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data demonstrates that flood risk extends across multiple zones. Properties in Zone A experienced 64 claims with an average payout of $29,440 and an average recorded water depth of 20 inches. Meanwhile, properties in Zone X recorded 48 claims with an average payout of $54,567 and an average water depth of 15 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents in both high-risk Special Flood Hazard Areas (Zone A) and moderate-to-low risk areas (Zone X) should pay close attention to this historical risk profile when evaluating property vulnerabilities.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
6% of Louisa County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
68 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 17 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 53 claims and $3.2M paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes, 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.
28 NOAA storm reports from Louisa County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Iowa flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 11 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Mar 12, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 19, 2013 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 25, 2008 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 23, 2007 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 19, 2004 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 3, 2002 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes And Flooding | Apr 8, 2001 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
84 since 1996: 27 flash floods and 57 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 25, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 20, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 11, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jul 2, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Apr 26, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 28, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Apr 25, 2019 | — |
| Flood | May 21, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 25, 2025. A thunderstorm complex associated with an MCV lifted northeastward across parts of eastern Iowa. This complex of storms was slow moving and produced heavy rain as it lifted across the area. This lead to flash flooding in Louisa and Muscatine Counties. Trained spotters reported rainfall amounts up to 3.25 inches.
Flash Flood · Jul 20, 2025. A decaying mesoscale convective system moved into eastern Iowa during the morning hours of July 20th. These showers and storms produced heavy rain with trained spotters reporting 1 to 3 inches of rain. This lead to flash flooding in parts of Washington, Louisa, and Muscatine Counties.
Flash Flood · Jul 11, 2025. On July 11th, a line of severe thunderstorms moved across eastern Iowa and produced damaging straight-line winds, tornadoes and heavy rain. Rainfall totals of 2 to 4 inches fell in a few hours across the Quad Cities, on top of heavy rain from the previous night and caused major flash flooding in Davenport. A Considerable Flash Flood warning was issued at 5:26 PM followed by a Flash Flood Emergency at 6:16 PM.
Flood · Jul 2, 2024. Rain that fell during the month of June across Minnesota and Wisconsin caused rises on the Mississippi River along the Iowa and Illinois border. Additionally, heavy rain that fell locally in July helped to prolong the crest and delay the river falling below flood stage, especially south of the Wapsipinicon, Rock, and Iowa Rivers.
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 Louisa 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.