38 flood insurance claims·$264,816 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 Washington 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 severe weather events dominates the flood history of Washington County, with NOAA records showing 24 flash flood events compared to 2 floods over the last 30 years. Heavy rainfall events, such as those driven by persistent rain and thunderstorms in November 2024 and heavy downpours from training storms in July 2021, frequently produce impassable roads and rapid water accumulation within a short timeframe.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood claims have been filed across multiple zones, with Zone A recording 29 claims averaging a payout of $7,336 with an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Properties categorized under Zone UNKNOWN logged 5 claims with an average payout of $14,499 and an average water depth of 3 inches, while Zone X properties recorded 3 claims with an average payout of $11,800 and an average water depth of 1 inch. An additional claim was filed in Zone X_UNSHADED with an average payout of $0 and an average water depth of 0 inches. Homeowners and real estate professionals in Zone A and unmapped or unknown zones should pay the closest attention to property-specific elevation and drainage, given the prevalence of localized flash flooding.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
3% of Washington County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
30 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 5 claims and $38,158 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 Washington County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Missouri flood stories →
27 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 29, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Mar 30, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Nov 3, 2024 |
| 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, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 19, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 31, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
26 since 1996: 24 flash floods and 2 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Apr 4, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 4, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 29, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 16, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 29, 2017 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 15, 2016 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 11, 2016 | — |
| Flood | Jun 16, 2015 | — |
— = 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 · Nov 4, 2024. Overnight on Sunday, November 3rd, a shield of rain and thunderstorms moved into the bi-state area. By Monday morning, persistent rainfall resulted in fatal flash flooding in southeast Missouri, with one fatality occurring in Iron County. Later on Monday evening, a QLCS produced two EF-0 tornadoes in east-central Missouri and shifted the axis of heaviest rain to the north. Due to the shift northward, record rainfa…
Flash Flood · Apr 29, 2021. Southerly flow as well as intermittent showers and a few thunderstorms raised the dew point into the mid 60s to around 70 across the area. Also, forecast soundings showed a very moist and deep warm layer up to around 12,000 feet. This combined with strong 850mb moisture convergence across southern Missouri and Illinois and precipitable water values in the 99th plus percentile, set the region up for a heavy rain…
Flash Flood · Jul 16, 2021. Training storms moved through portions of southeast Missouri and southwestern Illinois with up to 4 inches of rain in a short amount of time. There were several reports of flash flooding.
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 Washington 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.