1,160 flood insurance claims·$7.0M 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 Ste. Genevieve 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 heavy rainfall events dominates the flood risk profile in Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri, accounting for 15 out of 21 recorded flood events and two deaths over the last 30 years.
Severe storms have repeatedly triggered these hazards, such as in April 2017 when rainfall totals surpassing nine inches led to flash flooding and historic flooding along river tributaries, and in May 2018 when heavy rain from showers and thunderstorms produced additional flash flooding.
Property owners and real estate professionals should pay the closest attention to properties located within FEMA Zone A, which accounts for the vast majority of local NFIP claims with 1,097 filings, an average payout of $7,406, and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Properties in shaded and unshaded Zone X areas also experience significant impacts, recording average payouts of $17,832 and $14,800 respectively, alongside average water depths of 4 and 8 inches.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
1% of Ste. Genevieve County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
1,112 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 4 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 293 claims and $3.1M paid, the year of Severe Storms & Flooding and 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.
5 NOAA storm reports from Ste. Genevieve County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Missouri flood stories →
31 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Mar 30, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jul 29, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 29, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Mar 11, 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, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 15, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 29, 2013 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
21 since 1996: 15 flash floods and 6 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Apr 4, 2025 | $30,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 17, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 9, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Dec 28, 2015 | $300,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 8, 2015 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 7, 2015 | — |
| Flood | Jun 1, 2013 | $1,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Apr 4, 2025. A stationary front over southern Missouri along with ample mid-level forcing, moisture, and efficient rain processes resulted in flooding across portions of east-central and southeast Missouri. Numerous roads across the St. Louis metropolitan area were impassable due to the heavy rainfall.
Flash Flood · May 17, 2018. An upper level vort max moved through the region, triggering showers and thunderstorms. Some of the storms produced heavy rainfall that lead to flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Aug 9, 2018. Storms trained across southeastern portions of Missouri with several rounds of heavy rain. This produced flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Apr 29, 2017. A strong spring storm system brought multiple rounds of thunderstorms and heavy rain to the southeast half of Missouri during the weekend of April 29th-30th. Rainfall totals surpassed nine inches in some locations and this led to flash flooding and historic flooding along some of the tributaries of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. Areas along the Meramec River were especially hard hit as new records were set…
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 Ste. Genevieve 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.