2,253 flood insurance claims·$33.8M 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 Lincoln 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.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Lincoln County, Missouri, accounting for 38 out of 56 recorded flood events over the last 30 years alongside 18 general flood events. Severe storms frequently produce training thunderstorms and high rainfall rates that trigger rapid flooding. For instance, a July 2022 event dropped upwards of 11 inches of rain over roughly 8 hours from Hawk Point toward St. Peters, while a July 2025 event brought multiple rounds of heavy rain that prompted a state of emergency in Elsberry, resulting in 42 water rescues, impacts to 70 to 80 homes and businesses, and costs upward of $5 million.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims across multiple zones, with the vast majority concentrated in high-risk areas. Zone A accounts for 1,973 claims with an average payout of $17,723 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. Properties outside high-risk special flood hazard areas also experience losses; Zone X records show 48 claims with an average payout of $23,604 and an average recorded water depth of 11 inches, while Zone X unshaded records 19 claims with an average payout of $17,253 and an average recorded water depth of 21 inches. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within Zone A, as well as lower-lying parcels across moderate- and low-risk zones where flash flooding routinely produces standing water inside structures.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
2% of Lincoln County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
2,015 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 12 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 511 claims and $11.9M 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.
13 NOAA storm reports from Lincoln County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Missouri flood stories →
29 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 5 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, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 23, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 15, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 29, 2013 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 31, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 26, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And A Tornado | Sep 11, 2008 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
56 since 1996: 38 flash floods and 18 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 20, 2025 | $60,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 20, 2025 | $5.0M |
| Flash Flood | Jul 26, 2022 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 25, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 12, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 28, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 27, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 8, 2020 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 20, 2025. During the late evening and early morning hours of July 20th/21st, an MCS moved southeast through east-central Missouri. The front edge of the system produced very efficient and heavy rainfall, causing flash flood conditions quickly. This was exacerbated in portions of eastern Audrain County which received multiple rounds of this heavy rain.
Flash Flood · Jul 20, 2025. During the night of July 26th-July 27th, moisture convergence along a low-level jet spurred convection in eastern Missouri. This convection developed in an environment primed for efficient and heavy rainfall. Multiple rounds of thunderstorms trained over Lincoln County, producing flash flooding mainly in Elsberry where a state of emergency was declared. In all, there were 42 water rescues and 70 to 80 homes and bu…
Flash Flood · Jul 26, 2022. During the early morning of Tuesday, July 26th, 2022, a complex of training thunderstorms set up roughly along the I-70 corridor in Missouri and I-64 corridor in Illinois. Several rounds of thunderstorms with rainfall rates exceeding 2in/hr affected this area, including the St. Louis metropolitan area, through the early hours of July 26th and into the morning commute. Upwards of 11 of rain fell over the course of…
Flash Flood · Jun 25, 2021. A composite outflow boundary extending from the Kansas City area towards southeast Missouri was a focus for new development from the evening hours of June 25th through June 26th. There were numerous reports of damaging winds and flash flooding with this event, as well as a tornado.
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 Lincoln 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.