3 flood insurance claims·$4,500 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 Grant 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 severe weather systems dominates the local flood profile in Grant County, Kentucky. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 27 flash flood events alongside 19 general flood events. Recent incidents include heavy downpours on January 3, 2023, driven by morning showers and thunderstorms ahead of a low-pressure system moving through the Ohio Valley. Additional flooding occurred on April 28, 2021, when an upper-level disturbance brought locally heavy rainfall and gusty storms to the region during the afternoon and evening hours.
Historical National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) records indicate minimal overall claim activity, with single claims distributed across Zone A, Zone UNKNOWN, and Zone X. The recorded claims show distinct variations in average payouts and water depths: Zone A recorded an average payout of $0 with an average water depth of 0 inches; Zone UNKNOWN recorded an average payout of $4,500 with an average water depth of 1 inch; and Zone X recorded an average payout of $0 with an average water depth of 99 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties situated in mapped special flood hazard areas like Zone A, as well as unmapped areas or Zone X locations where intense localized rainfall can lead to unexpected water accumulation.
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 50 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 1980, with 1 claims and $4,500 paid.
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 federal disaster declarations since 1996, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 2, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, And Landslides | Feb 14, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 3, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 6, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 21, 2018 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 3, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds And Flooding | Feb 29, 2012 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
46 since 1996: 27 flash floods and 19 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jan 3, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Apr 28, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 24, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 18, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 18, 2018 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 18, 2018 | $30,000 |
| Flood | Sep 8, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Jul 2, 2018 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jan 3, 2023. Showers and thunderstorms developed during the morning hours ahead of a low pressure system moving through the Ohio Valley.
Flood · Apr 28, 2021. Showers and thunderstorms developed during the after and evening hours as an upper level disturbance moved through the Ohio Valley. Some of the storms produced locally heavy rainfall and gusty winds.
Flash Flood · May 24, 2020. Scattered thunderstorms developed during the afternoon hours as a weak upper level disturbance moved through the Ohio Valley.
Flash Flood · May 18, 2018. Scattered thunderstorms developed along a stalled boundary that was lingering across the Ohio Valley. Some of the storms produced 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 Grant 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.