49 flood insurance claims·$1.1M paid·3 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 Jefferson 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 from summer thunderstorms dominates Jefferson County, accounting for over 70 percent of recorded flood events over the last 30 years. NOAA storm records document severe impacts from these systems, including flash flooding reported during storms in May 2022 and July 2023, as well as general flooding from scattered severe storms in August 2024.
National Flood Insurance Program records show that properties located in high-risk Zone A face the most severe historical impacts, accounting for 26 claims with an average water depth of 17 inches and an average payout of $42,740. Properties in moderate-to-low risk zones, including Zone X and shaded Zone X, have also experienced claims, though with significantly lower average water depths of 1 to 2 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties situated within Zone A, where historical flood claims demonstrate a consistent risk of significant interior water accumulation.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
41% of Jefferson County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
44 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 13 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 1993, with 22 claims and $52,774 paid, the year of Severe Storms & 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 Jefferson County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Kansas flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1967, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Tornadoes And Flooding | May 9, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding,landslides,and Mudslides | Apr 28, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 4, 2015 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm | Dec 22, 2009 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Dec 6, 2007 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Oct 1, 2005 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Sep 1, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Heavy Rains, And Flooding | Jan 4, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
74 since 1996: 53 flash floods and 21 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Aug 27, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 14, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 17, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 30, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 29, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 20, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 22, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 17, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Aug 27, 2024. Scattered severe storms developed during the afternoon and early evening across eastern Kansas, producing wind gusts up to 60 mph and hail up to half dollar size. Flooding was also reported in Jefferson county.
Flash Flood · Jul 14, 2023. Thunderstorms developed into a QLCS during the afternoon of July 14th and produced widespread wind damage across the area. Winds exceeded 70 mph at times.
Flash Flood · May 17, 2022. Two large clusters of storms formed into a large QLCS and produced hail, damaging wind to as high as 85 mph, and flash flooding during the evening of 5/17.
Flash Flood · Jul 30, 2020. Flash flooding occurred again on 7/30 in parts of Shawnee and Jefferson Counties with another round of additional heavy rainfall.
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 Jefferson 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.