72 flood insurance claims·$1.6M paid·2 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 Wilson 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 severe weather and thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Wilson County, Kansas, accounting for 33 events compared to 21 standard flood events over the last 30 years.
Recent localized events illustrate this risk. In April 2024, volatile severe weather brought an abundance of moisture, numerous rotating storms, and multiple flood and flash flood events across the region. Subsequent heavy rainfall from May 12 to May 14, 2023, produced isolated to scattered thunderstorms that resulted in minor flooding in some locations, following earlier patterns such as the heavy showers that prompted flood warnings in July 2021.
National Flood Insurance Program records show that properties in Zone A have experienced the highest frequency of claims with 47 filings, averaging an 18-inch water depth and a $21,386 payout. Meanwhile, unshaded and shaded Zone X properties have recorded 22 total claims with average water depths ranging from 5 to 20 inches and payouts exceeding $18,500. Homeowners in mapped high-risk zones, such as Zone A, alongside property owners in moderate-to-low risk Zone X areas where significant water depths have occasionally been recorded, should pay the closest attention to these flood risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
32% of Wilson County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
69 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 15 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 31 claims and $614,949 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.
18 NOAA storm reports from Wilson County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Kansas flood stories →
17 federal disaster declarations since 1976, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 25, 2024 |
| Tornadoes And Flooding | May 9, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding,landslides,and Mudslides | Apr 28, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jul 22, 2013 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Jun 7, 2010 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm | Dec 22, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Apr 25, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding And Tornadoes | May 22, 2008 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
54 since 1996: 33 flash floods and 21 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Apr 28, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 27, 2024 | — |
| Flood | May 12, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 3, 2022 | $100 |
| Flood | Jul 16, 2021 | — |
| Flood | May 15, 2020 | — |
| Flood | May 26, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 22, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Apr 28, 2024. On Saturday April 27th, there was volatile severe weather across Kansas and Oklahoma. An abundance of moisture and increasing shear through the day resulted in numerous rotating storms which produced several tornadoes across the Flint Hills into southeast Kansas. The strongest tornado was an EF-2 which occurred in Cowley County which did damage to a few outbuildings. Luckily there were no injuries or fatalities re…
Flash Flood · Apr 27, 2024. On Saturday April 27th, there was volatile severe weather across Kansas and Oklahoma. An abundance of moisture and increasing shear through the day resulted in numerous rotating storms which produced several tornadoes across the Flint Hills into southeast Kansas. The strongest tornado was an EF-2 which occurred in Cowley County which did damage to a few outbuildings. Luckily there were no injuries or fatalities re…
Flood · May 12, 2023. Multiple rounds of isolated to scattered thunderstorms impacted portions of the Flint Hills and southeast Kansas from May 12 to May 14. While not widespread, a few storms produced up to 70 mph winds and up to quarter-sized hail. Minor flooding also occurred in some locations.
Flash Flood · Jul 3, 2022. An isolated slow moving storm caused flash flooding over southeast Kansas on July 4th, 2022.
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 Wilson 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.