91 flood insurance claims·$3.2M paid·1 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 Allen County, Kansas. 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 and general river flooding from slow-moving thunderstorms and frontal boundaries dominate the flood risk in Allen County, Kansas. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database has recorded 34 flood events and 24 flash flood events. Recent incidents include a slow-moving thunderstorm system that produced 3 to 6 inches of rainfall and flash flooding on June 1st, 2022, as well as widespread flooding on May 8th, 2019, when heavy rainfall inundated areas already saturated from recent storms. Another minor flooding event occurred along a weak cold front on August 13th, 2023.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that high-risk Zone A properties experience the most severe impacts, accounting for 79 claims with an average payout of $41,616 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. In contrast, Zone X properties have recorded 10 claims with an average payout of $18,749 and an average water depth of 5 inches, while Zone X unshaded properties show 1 claims with an average payout of $31,600 and an average water depth of 5 inches, and Zone X shaded properties show 1 claims with an average payout of $6 and an average water depth of 1 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties located within Zone A, where historical claims show significantly higher average water depths and financial payouts compared to other zones.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
2% of Allen County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
81 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 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 2007, with 68 claims and $2.5M paid, the year of Severe Storms and Flooding and Severe Winter Storms.
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.
22 NOAA storm reports from Allen County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Kansas flood stories →
14 federal disaster declarations since 1969, 1 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 25, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jul 14, 2023 |
| Tornadoes And Flooding | May 9, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding,landslides,and Mudslides | Apr 28, 2019 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm | Dec 22, 2009 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Dec 6, 2007 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 26, 2007 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Sep 1, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
58 since 1996: 24 flash floods and 34 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Aug 13, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jun 1, 2022 | $100 |
| Flood | Mar 12, 2021 | — |
| Flood | May 28, 2020 | — |
| Flood | May 22, 2020 | $100 |
| Flood | Apr 30, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Sep 28, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Aug 11, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Aug 13, 2023. During the afternoon hours on August 13th, 2023, a weak cold front sagged southward across the area. Widely scattered strong to severe thunderstorms developed along the front as it slowly pushed southward during the late afternoon and evening hours. These storms produced wind damage as a result of wind gusts around 60 to 75 mph along with up to nickel sized hail. Minor flooding was also reported in portions of sou…
Flood · Jun 1, 2022. Slow moving thunderstorms, that produced heavy rainfall began during the evening of May 31st. 2022, and persisted into the overnight hours across south central Kansas. The flash flooding continued into the early morning hours of June 1st. 2022. Heavy rainfall amounts ranged from 3 to 6 inches, caused flooding and flash flooding across southeast and south central Kansas.
Flood · Mar 12, 2021. Scattered severe storms moved across south central Kansas on the 12th producing copious amounts of rain and wind speeds between 60 and 65 mph.
Flood · May 28, 2020. Minor flooding was noted across portions of Allen county on the 28th.
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 Allen 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.