179 flood insurance claims·$3.7M paid·7 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 Carroll 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.
River flooding and flash flooding from storms dominate Carroll County, with the NOAA Storm Events Database recording 55 floods and 21 flash floods over the last 30 years. Prolonged riverine events are exemplified by Missouri River flooding that began in March due to heavy late winter and spring precipitation mixed with a loaded snow pack, continuing into major flood stages through May and June 2019. Flash flooding risks are also present, driven by severe weather patterns such as the storm system on June 25, 2021, that brought torrential rains and widespread damage across northern Missouri.
National Flood Insurance Program records show that flood impacts span multiple zones, with Zone A bearing the heaviest administrative burden through 141 claims averaging a $23,723 payout and an average recorded water depth of 8 inches. Properties in unshaded Zone X experienced fewer claims at 7, but recorded a higher average payout of $107,281 and an average water depth of 4 inches, while Zone UNKNOWN recorded 27 claims with an average payout of $8,180 and an average water depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within Zone A along rivers and floodplains, as well as properties in unshaded Zone X where lower claim frequencies have historically correlated with substantially higher average payout amounts.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
7% of Carroll County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
151 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 7 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 1993, with 39 claims and $943,111 paid, the year of Severe Storms & 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.
9 NOAA storm reports from Carroll County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Missouri flood stories →
28 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 24, 2021 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 29, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Mar 11, 2019 |
| Flooding | Jun 1, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Jun 12, 2010 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 26, 2009 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
76 since 1996: 21 flash floods and 55 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 25, 2021 | — |
| Flood | May 21, 2019 | — |
| Flood | May 1, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Jun 1, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Apr 1, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 31, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Sep 14, 2016 | — |
| Flood | Sep 13, 2016 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jun 25, 2021. Late in the afternoon, and through the evening hours on June 24 a cluster of storms over southeast Nebraska congealed into a line of thunderstorms that focused across northern Missouri. Most notably within this line of storms was a cluster of QLCS tornadoes that formed in Grundy County. There may have been other tornadoes associated with circulations that were noted on radar, but emergency management confirmed dam…
Flood · May 21, 2019. A line of generally sub-severe thunderstorms moved through the region during the early morning hours on May 21. These storms didn't produce any severe winds or hail, but as they moved east wake low winds produced damage consisting of several tree limbs down as well as power lines and power poles. The storms then went on to produce torrential rains which caused areas of flooding.
Flood · May 1, 2019. Heavy late winter and spring precipitation, mixed with a loaded snow pack caused the Missouri River to flood in March. Consistent heavy rains continued the Missouri River flooding into and through May. Some locations along the Missouri River were in major flood for several weeks as heavy rains continued.
Flood · Jun 1, 2019. Heavy late winter and spring precipitation, mixed with a loaded snow pack caused the Missouri River to flood in March. Consistent heavy rains continued the Missouri River flooding into and through June. Some locations along the Missouri River were in major flood for several weeks as heavy rains continued. While the flooding continued through June, there was some gradual and steady improvement across the Missouri R…
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 Carroll 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.