247 flood insurance claims·$2.5M paid·18 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 Norman 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.
River flooding and snowmelt from spring precipitation dominate the flood character of Norman County, backed by 19 general flood events and 12 flash flood events recorded over the last 30 years. NOAA storm data documents that spring snowmelt flooding began in mid-April 2023 along Minnesota tributaries and persisted into early May, with similar conditions occurring in late April 2023.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that property damage is not confined to high-risk areas. Zone A properties account for 109 claims with an average payout of $11,993 and an average recorded water depth of 16 inches. Meanwhile, Zone X properties logged 77 claims with an average payout of $17,017 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. An additional 58 claims occurred in zones marked as unknown, averaging $4,672 with an average water depth of 3 inches, alongside minimal claims in shaded and unshaded Zone X areas.
Homeowners and real estate agents near rivers and within designated Zone A and Zone X flood zones should pay the closest attention to property risk, given the history of recurring snowmelt and tributary flooding across the county.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
3% of Norman County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
112 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 9 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 108 claims and $1.6M 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.
9 NOAA storm reports from Norman County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Minnesota flood stories →
32 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 18 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Apr 11, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 22, 2022 |
| 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 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
31 since 1996: 12 flash floods and 19 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Apr 18, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Apr 17, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Apr 14, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Apr 13, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 23, 2022 | $20,000 |
| Flood | Apr 4, 2019 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 28, 2016 | $500 |
| Flood | May 30, 2013 | $5,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Apr 18, 2023. The spring snowmelt flooding began in late April 2023 and persisted into the early portions of May for some locations.
Flood · Apr 17, 2023. Snowmelt flooding along the Minnesota Tributaries began in mid-April, with a few locations persisting into early May.
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 Norman 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.