798 flood insurance claims·$11.8M paid·5 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 Saginaw County, Michigan. 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.
Saginaw County flood risk is characterized primarily by riverine flooding, supported by 33 recorded flood events compared to 7 flash flood events over the last 30 years. Heavy precipitation systems, stalled low-pressure boundaries, and snowmelt have repeatedly impacted the region, exemplified by a stalled system in May 2020 that brought 4 to 6 inches of rainfall to the Tri-Cities region and caused significant flooding along the Saginaw River. Another heavy rain event in May 2019 produced over 4 inches of rain across southeast Saginaw County, flooding numerous roads around Frankenmuth and causing $4.5 million in damage.
National Flood Insurance Program records show that flood impacts span multiple zones, with the vast majority of claims concentrated in Zone A, which accounts for 623 claims with an average payout of $22,479 and an average recorded water depth of 7 inches. Additional claims occurred in Zone X_Shaded (64 claims, average payout of $6,245, average water depth of 12 inches), Zone X (44 claims, average payout of $29,114, average water depth of 7 inches), Zone Unknown (36 claims, average payout of $4,710, average water depth of 2 inches), and Zone X_Unshaded (31 claims, average payout of $4,371, average water depth of 2 inches).
Properties located in Zone A and near major waterways such as the Saginaw River should pay the closest attention to flood risk, given the high concentration of historical claims and recorded river flooding.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
13% of Saginaw County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
718 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 7 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 1986, with 200 claims and $1.7M paid, the year of Severe Storms & 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.
11 NOAA storm reports from Saginaw County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Michigan flood stories →
17 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | May 16, 2020 |
| Flooding | Apr 16, 2013 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 6, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 20, 2004 |
| Snow | Dec 11, 2000 |
| Severe Storms | May 29, 1998 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes,and Flooding | Jul 2, 1997 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
40 since 1996: 7 flash floods and 33 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | May 18, 2020 | $9.0M |
| Flood | May 18, 2020 | $1.0M |
| Flood | May 25, 2019 | $300,000 |
| Flood | Feb 21, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Jun 24, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 11, 2014 | — |
| Flood | Apr 19, 2013 | $1.3M |
| Flood | Apr 10, 2013 | $150,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · May 18, 2020. A stalled low pressure system and frontal boundary across the southern Great Lakes region brought record rainfall to southeast Michigan beginning the morning of May 17, 2020 and continuing into the afternoon hours of May 19, 2020. Total rainfall reached 1 to 6 inches across southeast Michigan, with the 4 to 6 inches focused across the Tri-Cities region. As a result, several rivers across the region flooded includi…
Flood · May 25, 2019. Thunderstorms produced heavy rain, with 1 to 4 inches reported, generally along and north of I-69. Locations across southeast Saginaw and southwest Tuscola counties saw the heaviest rain, just over 4 inches which caused significant flooding, resulting in at least 4.5 million dollars of damage. Numerous roads around Frankenmuth were flooded, but most of the road washouts and damage occurred across the county line i…
Flood · Feb 21, 2018. A series of disturbances traveling along a slow-moving frontal boundary to the west of Southeast Michigan brought repeated rounds of heavy rainfall to the region over a 48 hour period. As the main low pressure system moved northeastward from the Central Plains to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan on Tuesday, February 20, record high moisture content for February standards moved into Southeast Michigan. Record warmth…
Flood · Jun 24, 2017. Warm, moist tropical air during the day on Thursday helped to spark severe storms that began to develop during the late afternoon hours. These storms continued through the evening before the severe threat switched over to a flooding threat during the overnight hours. Heavy rain continued to fall across much of the area throughout the overnight as a cold front pushed eastward. Numerous trees and power lines were re…
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 Saginaw 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.