15 flood insurance claims·$188,706 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 Washington 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 floods and floods dominate Washington County, with the NOAA Storm Events Database recording 32 flood events and 29 flash flood events over the last 30 years. Heavy rainfall from severe weather systems frequently triggers these conditions. For example, a decaying mesoscale convective system on July 20, 2025, produced 1 to 3 inches of rain and subsequent flash flooding. Additionally, extensive flooding occurred in late May and June 2019 after 5 to 8 inches of rain fell on saturated soils, bringing rivers above moderate to major flood levels.
National Flood Insurance Program records show varying impacts across different zones. Zone A recorded 9 claims with an average payout of $12,084 and an average recorded water depth of 17 inches. Unshaded Zone X recorded 4 claims with an average payout of $22,480 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Zone X recorded 2 claims with an average payout of $7,099 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties in Zone A, where claims show significantly higher average water depths.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 11 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 7 claims and $68,307 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.
27 NOAA storm reports from Washington County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Iowa flood stories →
15 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms | Aug 10, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 26, 2014 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Jun 1, 2010 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 25, 2008 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Dec 10, 2007 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 23, 2007 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 19, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
61 since 1996: 29 flash floods and 32 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 20, 2025 | — |
| Flood | May 29, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 28, 2019 | — |
| Flood | May 20, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Mar 14, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Oct 7, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 28, 2016 | $50,000 |
| Flood | Dec 15, 2015 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
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.
Flood · May 29, 2019. Extensive flooding occurred late May and into June across eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois, and northeast Missouri. The last half of May was very wet with 5-8 inches of rain falling over the region. This combined with saturated soils, brought many rivers above Moderate to Major flood levels. Many climate sites only saw 3 days of no precipitation from May 16th to May 31st. |The Wapsipinicon, Iowa, Skunk, Des Moines…
Flash Flood · May 28, 2019. A frontal boundary settled across northern Kansas, northern Missouri and central Illinois. This front was the focus area for the development of several rounds of showers and thunderstorms that impacted the region. The first round came through during the morning, and produced mainly torrential rainfall, small hail, brief wind gusts and frequent lightning. |The second round of showers and thunderstorms developed and…
Flood · May 20, 2019. Extensive flooding occurred late May and into June across eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois, and northeast Missouri. The last half of May was very wet with 5-8 inches of rain falling over the region. This combined with saturated soils, brought many rivers above Moderate to Major flood levels. Many climate sites only saw 3 days of no precipitation from May 16th to May 31st. |The Wapsipinicon, Iowa, Skunk, Des Moines…
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 Washington 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.