27 flood insurance claims·$325,192 paid
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 Breckinridge County, Kentucky. 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 driven by summer thunderstorms and heavy rainfall systems dominates the flood risk profile in Breckinridge County, Kentucky. Over the last 30 years, NOAA records document 27 flash flood events resulting in 1 death, alongside 16 general flood events. Recent events include localized flash flooding observed during slow-moving storms on July 22, 2024, and widespread heavy rainfall from strong storm systems on January 3, 2023, and February 16, 2023.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that properties located within high-risk Zone A have recorded the highest frequency of claims, totaling 14 claims with an average payout of $11,905 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Meanwhile, properties designated as Zone X have recorded higher severity in smaller sample sizes, with 4 claims averaging $17,971 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches, and 2 claims in Zone X unshaded averaging $110,221 with 0 inches of recorded water depth.
Homeowners and real estate agents should pay the most attention to properties situated within designated Zone A, which accounts for the majority of historical flood insurance claims in the area, as well as properties in Zone X that have experienced significant average water depths during past flooding events.
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 3 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 2011, with 7 claims and $161,133 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.
14 NOAA storm reports from Breckinridge County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Kentucky flood stories →
28 federal disaster declarations since 1974.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 2, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Apr 2, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, And Landslides | Feb 14, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 14, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Landslides, And Mudslides | May 21, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 3, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Dec 10, 2021 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
43 since 1996: 27 flash floods and 16 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 22, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 16, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 3, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Dec 11, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 30, 2019 | $10,000 |
| Flood | Feb 25, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Feb 23, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Nov 1, 2018 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 22, 2024. A stationary front was draped across central Kentucky, with waves of showers and thunderstorms moving along and north of this front on July 22nd. During the early morning hours, a cluster of slow-moving storms produced heavy rainfall which resulted in flash flooding across parts of Barren County. Another wave of showers and storms later in the afternoon produced scattered wind damage across Warren County, with mor…
Flash Flood · Feb 16, 2023. A strong storm system moved through the Ohio Valley beginning late in the evening on February 15th and continuing through much of the day on February 16th. An amplified mid- and upper-level trough moved across the central Plains during this time period, with an associated surface disturbance transiting from the Red River Valley northeastward into the Ohio Valley. A surface warm front was located parallel to the Oh…
Flash Flood · Jan 3, 2023. During the overnight hours and into the morning on January 3rd, a strong system moved across central Kentucky, bringing isolated damaging wind gusts and widespread heavy rainfall. The system was associated with a negatively-tilted upper-level trough which moved from the Four Corners region on January 2nd to the upper Midwest by January 4th. A surface cyclone transited in a similar fashion to the upper trough, with…
Flash Flood · Dec 11, 2021. Strong southern winds brought warm temperatures and plenty of moisture into an environment of strong wind shear ahead of an advancing cold front. This resulted in unusually warm temperatures for a December day and the ingredients to produce a historic tornado outbreak and flash flooding. This included multiple long track tornadoes. Central Kentucky saw 18 tornadoes that injured 96 and killed 18. An additional deat…
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 Breckinridge 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.