21 flood insurance claims·$201,813 paid·4 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 Larue 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 from heavy rainfall and slow-moving storms dominates the flood risk profile in Larue County, Kentucky, accounting for 22 of the 31 recorded flood events over the last 30 years, alongside 9 general flood events.
Recent history illustrates this pattern. On March 6, 2022, a southward-moving cold front produced heavy rainfall and thunderstorms that caused minor flash flooding across the area. Another incident occurred on May 3, 2024, when a persistent storm cell stalled over portions of LaRue County, resulting in heavy rainfall totals and minor flash flooding along U.S. Route 31E in the northern part of the county.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that historical claims are concentrated in specific areas, with Zone A accounting for 15 claims averaging $13,730 with an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. An additional 6 claims were filed under an unknown zone, averaging $1,919 with an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents with properties located within Zone A should pay the closest attention to this flood risk.
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 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 2010, with 5 claims and $141,673 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Tornadoes.
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.
11 NOAA storm reports from Larue County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Kentucky flood stories →
25 federal disaster declarations since 1970, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | May 16, 2025 |
| 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, Tornadoes, Landslides, And Mudslides | May 21, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 3, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 3, 2015 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
31 since 1996: 22 flash floods and 9 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 3, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Jul 24, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 16, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 6, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 14, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 17, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Jul 5, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 24, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 3, 2024. Scattered showers and thunderstorms moved across central and southern Kentucky during the afternoon and evening hours on May 3rd. One particular cell remained across portions of LaRue County for an extended period of time, resulting in heavy rainfall totals. This heavy rainfall resulted in minor flash flooding along U.S. Route 31E in northern LaRue County.
Flood · Jul 24, 2023. While the synoptic scale pattern on July 24th and 25th, 2023 had a similar appearance to earlier events in the month with large scale troughing across the Ohio Valley, the flow aloft was generally weaker, which limited the overall severe potential to more of a typical summertime event. On the other hand, instability values were quite impressive, with 2500-3500 J/kg of mixed-layer CAPE developing across central Ken…
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 · Mar 6, 2022. On the evening of March 6th, a cold front dropped south through central Kentucky. This caused heavy rainfall and thunderstorms to develop over the area. Multiple counties saw minor flash flooding issues, and one storm started a structure fire with a lightning strike.
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 Larue 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.