17 flood insurance claims·$269,697 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 Barton County, Missouri. 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.
Frequent flash flooding from intense storms dominates Barton County, driven by 79 flash flood events and 68 general flood events recorded over the last 30 years, resulting in one recorded fatality.
Recent events illustrate this recurring hazard. Heavy rainfall from a strong storm system on April 20, 2025, forced multiple area rivers to minor and moderate flood stages following earlier rains that week. Later, a round of showers and thunderstorms on June 6, 2025, produced flash flooding as heavy rainfall fell on saturated soils.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims filed across multiple zones. Zone A policies recorded 10 claims with an average payout of $17,300 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Zone UNKNOWN recorded 6 claims with an average payout of $4,390 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Zone X recorded 1 claim with an average payout of $74,746 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Homeowners and real estate agents with properties in Zone A and low-lying or river-adjacent areas should pay the most attention to these flood risks.
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 2 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 2007, with 4 claims and $40,575 paid.
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.
31 NOAA storm reports from Barton County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Missouri flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1976, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jul 29, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 29, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds And Flooding | Apr 28, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 23, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 29, 2013 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 8, 2009 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
147 since 1996: 79 flash floods and 68 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Apr 30, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 27, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Apr 20, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 15, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jun 6, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jun 4, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 9, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Jun 9, 2024 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Apr 30, 2025. Slow moving showers and storms moved over portions of the Ozarks that had received multiple rounds of heavy rainfall over the preceding week. This lead to flooding on several low water crossings and caused some rivers to reach minor flood stage.
Flash Flood · Jun 27, 2025. A localized area of flash flooding occurred during the afternoon hours of June 27th across Barton County. A thunderstorm also occurred in Dade county.
Flood · Apr 20, 2025. A strong storm system moved through the area on Sunday April 20th, 2025. This system brought tornadoes, damaging wind, large hail and heavy rain. The heavy rainfall led to flooding as the area had already received heavy rainfall from storms earlier in the week. Multiple area rivers reached minor to moderate flood stage due to heavy runoff.
Flood · Apr 20, 2025. Slow moving storms produced heavy rainfall across portions of the Ozarks causing flooding of multiple low water areas. The initial storms that develop the evening of the 18th were able to take advantage at limited shear and instability to produce a brief EF0 tornado and localized wind damage.
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 Barton 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.