82 flood insurance claims·$240,235 paid·6 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 Montgomery 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.
Standard river flooding and flash flooding dominate the historical record, with NOAA data showing 21 flood events and 8 flash flood events over the last 30 years. Notable events include a March 2019 bomb cyclone that caused widespread, historic flooding driven by rapid snowmelt and rainfall over frozen ground, as well as a May 2019 event that brought 2 to 8.75 inches of rain and subsequent river flooding on local waterways including the West Nishnabotna River, Nishnabotna River, and Nodaway River. Repeated thunderstorms also caused minor creek flooding in May 2016, and heavy rainfall triggered flooding in December 2015.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that homeowners and real estate agents with properties in Zone A should pay the most attention, as this zone accounts for the vast majority of claims (68 claims) with an average payout of $3,470 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. Properties in unmapped or unknown zones also carry risk, accounting for 10 claims with a higher average payout of $6,912 and an average recorded water depth of 7 inches. Shaded and unshaded Zone X properties have experienced fewer claims with lower average water depths of 3 inches and 0 inches, respectively.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
6% of Montgomery County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
72 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 9 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 2007, with 26 claims and $62,759 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes and Severe Storms 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.
10 NOAA storm reports from Montgomery County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Iowa flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 20, 2024 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Mar 12, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 3, 2014 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Jun 1, 2010 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 25, 2008 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Dec 10, 2007 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Aug 17, 2007 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | May 5, 2007 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
29 since 1996: 8 flash floods and 21 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 24, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Mar 13, 2019 | $237,000 |
| Flood | May 27, 2016 | — |
| Flood | Jun 15, 2015 | — |
| Flood | Dec 14, 2015 | — |
| Flood | Sep 10, 2014 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 5, 2014 | — |
| Flood | Oct 2, 2014 | $5,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 24, 2019. Nocturnal thunderstorms moved through during the early morning hours of Friday, May 24, 2019. A tornado watch was in effect. A flash flood watch was also in effect. A squall line developed, with several possible embedded tornadic rotations. 24 hour rainfall amounts ranged from 2 to 8.75 inches, the highest amount in southwest Iowa. River flooding developed on local streams, including the West Nishnabotna River, t…
Flood · Mar 13, 2019. A 971mb bomb cyclone moved out of the central Rockies on Wednesday, March 13, 2019 and helped to create widespread, moderate to major, and in many cases historic, flooding across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa. From 4 to 15 inches of snow cover remained across the mid Missouri River valley, and the ground was frozen with existing frost depths of 15 to 23 inches. Warm temperatures allowed all of the snow to rapi…
Flood · May 27, 2016. Repeated thunderstorm events from the 24th through the 27th of May led to generally minor flooding along some creeks in southwest Iowa.
Flood · Jun 15, 2015. With ground already saturated from repeated heavy rainfall events in May and early June, another complex of thunderstorms producing very heavy rainfall moved across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa starting during the evening on the 10th and continued into the early morning hours on the 11th. This was followed with additional thunderstorms on the afternoon of the 11th over southeast Nebraska and southwest Iowa. T…
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 Montgomery 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.