39 flood insurance claims·$113,977 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 Seward 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.
Less than 1% of Seward County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
27 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 2 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 2003, with 11 claims and $18,782 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.
1 NOAA storm reports from Seward County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Kansas flood stories →
12 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 1 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 28, 2017 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 13, 2017 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Record And Near Record Snow | Mar 26, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding And Tornadoes | May 22, 2008 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Dec 6, 2007 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Dec 28, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Sep 1, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 4, 2003 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
13 since 1996: 10 flash floods and 3 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 18, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 3, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 24, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Jul 14, 2017 | — |
| Flood | May 18, 2010 | — |
| Flood | Jul 5, 2006 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 28, 2003 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 15, 2003 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 3, 2020. A subtle shortwave trough in northwest flow aloft helped produce early morning thunderstorms. These early morning storms were isolated but slow moving allowing for rainfall totals up to 6 inches.
Flood · Jul 14, 2017. Regardless of an extremely weak flow aloft across the Western High Plains during the period, showers and thunderstorms developed late in the afternoon/evening in the vicinity of a frontal boundary that remained near and along the vicinity of the Oklahoma border. Steep low/mid level lapse rates, sufficient instability, and increased forcing near the boundary created conditions favorable for isolated to widely scatt…
Flood · May 18, 2010. A strong upper level jet maxima helped to support isentropic lift across the area as a surface trough edged eastward. Abundant moisture interacted with the features to produce widespread thunderstorms, some severe.
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 Seward 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.