17 flood insurance claims·$154,781 paid·3 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 Choctaw County, Mississippi. 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 severe weather and heavy summer rainfall dominates the flood history of Choctaw County. Over the last 30 years, NOAA records show 22 flash flood events, alongside 2 standard floods, 2 hurricanes, 1 tropical storm, and 1 tropical depression. Recent events illustrate these hazards, such as a significant flash flood on July 13, 2023, where 6 to 9 inches of rain fell from Ackerman toward DeKalb, washing out roads, flooding structures, and submerging vehicles. Another active weather pattern brought severe storms and flooding to the region in mid-February 2025.
Federal flood insurance claims data reflect impacts across multiple zones. Properties in high-risk Zone A account for 13 claims with an average payout of $6,425 and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. Zone X properties recorded 2 claims with an average payout of $6,984 and an average recorded water depth of 99 inches. Additionally, single claims were recorded in an unknown zone, averaging a $2,082 payout with 0 inches of recorded water depth, and in unshaded Zone X, averaging a $68,613 payout with 0 inches of recorded water depth.
Homeowners and real estate agents in Choctaw County should pay the closest attention to properties located within high-risk Zone A, as well as structures in Zone X that have experienced significant average water depths during past events.
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 25 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 2023, with 2 claims and $15,087 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, 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.
16 NOAA storm reports from Choctaw County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Mississippi flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1979, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Hurricane Ida | Aug 28, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 12, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jan 10, 2020 |
| Severe Storm, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Oct 26, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Associated Flooding | Apr 15, 2011 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 23, 2010 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
28 since 1996: 22 flash floods and 2 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Feb 12, 2025 | $3,000 |
| Flood | Feb 12, 2025 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 13, 2023 | $1.2M |
| Flash Flood | Dec 14, 2022 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 30, 2021 | $25,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 30, 2021 | $15,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 10, 2021 | $105,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 5, 2021 | $50,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Feb 12, 2025. An active weather pattern set the stage for a couple rounds of severe weather in mid February. A large upper trough was situated over the Rockies and associated surface lows moved through and just north of the area. This pattern supported thunderstorms across southern portions of the area which produced wind damage and a few tornadoes on February 12th. A more potent system impacted the area on February 15th where…
Flash Flood · Jul 13, 2023. A significant flash flood event unfolded during the early morning hours of July 13th into the late morning and midday. A corridor of 6 to 9 inches fell, with locally higher amounts, roughly from Ackerman to Louisville to DeKalb MS. Some of the most impacted areas were across Choctaw and Winston Counties. Multiple roads were flooded, washed out or closed. Many structures were flooded as well along with stalled or s…
Flash Flood · Dec 14, 2022. Severe thunderstorms moved across Mississippi during the evening and overnight hours of the 13th into the 14th, with flash flooding across areas of the Delta and several tornadoes. Severe storm coverage diminished during the night, but storms became severe again during the afternoon of the 14th as a cold front interacted with a warm and unstable air mass in the region. Tornadoes on the 14th were generally along an…
Flash Flood · Aug 30, 2021. Major hurricane Ida made landfall as a strong category four hurricane around 11:55am on August 29 near Grand Isle, LA. It then moved very slowly north through south central Louisiana and into Mississippi on August 30. It then turned northeast and moved across the Jackson metro area as a tropical storm and into northeast Mississippi as a tropical depression through the early morning of August 31. Ida brought tropic…
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 Choctaw 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.