1,186 flood insurance claims·$7.2M 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 Lowndes 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 driven by summer thunderstorms and severe weather dominates the flood history of Lowndes County, accounting for 55 of the last 30 years of NOAA-recorded flood events, alongside 5 general floods, 3 hurricanes, 1 tropical storm, and 1 tropical depression. Recent NOAA narratives illustrate these threats, noting that strong to severe storms produced flash flooding on April 6, 2025, and numerous thunderstorms caused locally heavy rainfall and flash flooding on June 16, 2025.
Federal insurance data shows the vast majority of historical claims are concentrated in high-risk areas, with Zone A accounting for 970 claims averaging an 3-inch recorded water depth and a $7,716 payout. An additional 114 claims occurred in unknown zones with an average 2-inch water depth, while Zone X properties recorded 43 claims with a higher average water depth of 9 inches and a $16,377 payout. Zone D recorded 22 claims with an average 1-inch water depth, and Shaded Zone X recorded 20 claims with an average 3-inch water depth.
Homeowners and real estate agents in Zone A should pay the closest attention to flood risk due to the heavy concentration of historical claims, while properties in Zone X should account for potential higher-depth inundation during severe weather events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
3% of Lowndes County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
1,007 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 3 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 1983, with 253 claims and $734,606 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and 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.
36 NOAA storm reports from Lowndes County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Mississippi flood stories →
23 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 23, 2026 |
| Hurricane Ida | Aug 28, 2021 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Feb 22, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 28, 2014 |
| Hurricane Gustav | Aug 28, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Hurricane Dennis | Jul 10, 2005 |
| Hurricane Ivan | Sep 13, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
65 since 1996: 55 flash floods and 5 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 16, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 6, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 6, 2025 | $150,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 27, 2024 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 27, 2024 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 13, 2023 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 30, 2021 | $25,000 |
| Tropical Depression | Aug 30, 2021 | $10,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jun 16, 2025. Numerous thunderstorms developed during the afternoon of the 16th and again during the day on June 17th. Some storm clusters became severe and produced damaging winds as they moved northeast across the area. Additionally, locally heavy rainfall produced some flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Apr 6, 2025. On the evening of April 5th into the morning of April 6th, strong to severe storms produced tornadoes, damaging winds and flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Jul 27, 2024. Localized heavy rainfall fell across the area and produced some flash flooding.
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…
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 Lowndes 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.