1,358 flood insurance claims·$13.7M paid·15 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 Clay County, Minnesota. 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 summer thunderstorms and river floods dominate the flood history of Clay County, which recorded 32 flash flood events and 25 flood events—including one fatality—over the last 30 years. Recent impacts include urban pooling from over three inches of rain in August 2023, as well as prolonged spring snowmelt flooding that began in mid-April 2023 and persisted into early May.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that property damage is widespread across multiple zones. Zone A leads the county with 524 claims averaging $13,098 and an average recorded water depth of 8 inches. Properties in standard or moderate risk areas also face significant exposure, including 430 claims in Zone X averaging $9,491 with an average water depth of 6 inches, 204 claims in Zone X_UNSHADED averaging $11,774 with an average water depth of 8 inches, and 169 claims in Zone X_SHADED averaging $11,363 with an average water depth of 8 inches. An additional 31 claims were recorded in Zone UNKNOWN with an average payout of $7,640 and an average water depth of 3 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within high-risk Zone A, as well as structures in Zone X and its shaded and unshaded variants where hundreds of past claims demonstrate significant historical flood vulnerability.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
42% of Clay County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
897 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 8 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 1997, with 460 claims and $4.8M paid, the year of Severe Winter Storms and Severe Flooding, High Winds,severe 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.
17 NOAA storm reports from Clay County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Minnesota flood stories →
29 federal disaster declarations since 1966, 15 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Apr 11, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Mar 12, 2019 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Mar 16, 2011 |
| Flooding | Mar 1, 2010 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Mar 16, 2009 |
| Flooding | Mar 30, 2006 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Nov 27, 2005 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
57 since 1996: 32 flash floods and 25 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | May 24, 2024 | $500 |
| Flood | Apr 16, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Apr 14, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Apr 13, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 5, 2023 | — |
| Flood | May 1, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Mar 28, 2019 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 8, 2019 | $10,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · May 24, 2024. Heavy Rain brought on river flooding in late May of 2024 in Minnesota.
Flood · Apr 16, 2023. The spring snowmelt flooding began in late April 2023 and persisted into the early portions of May for some locations.
Flood · Apr 14, 2023. Snowmelt flooding along the Minnesota Tributaries began in mid-April, with a few locations persisting into early May.
Flood · Apr 13, 2023. Snowmelt flooding along the Minnesota Tributaries began in mid-April, with a few locations persisting into early May.
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 Clay 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.