141 flood insurance claims·$3.1M 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 Wayne 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.
Flooding in Wayne County is predominantly characterized by river floods, with 93 recorded events alongside 38 flash flood events over the last 30 years according to the NOAA Storm Events Database.
Recent weather patterns illustrate these risks. A slow-moving frontal boundary brought multiple rounds of training heavy rain from November 4 through November 6, 2024, affecting water levels on the Current and St. Francis Rivers. Earlier in the year, severe weather on May 26, 2024, driven by a shortwave trough and a warm frontal boundary, caused flash flooding across the region. Additionally, convection on July 8, 2024, produced torrential rainfall rates bolstered by moisture from Hurricane Beryl.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that properties in designated high-risk areas require the most attention, particularly Zone A, which accumulated 109 claims with an average payout of $28,173 and an average recorded water depth of 16 inches. Homeowners in Zone X also experienced significant impacts, recording 11 claims with an average payout of $59,038 and an average water depth of 11 inches. Properties associated with an unknown zone recorded 21 claims averaging $5,865 with an average water depth of 4 inches.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Wayne County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
109 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 14 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 2008, with 65 claims and $1.9M paid, the year of Severe Storms and Flooding and Severe Storms, Flooding, and A Tornado.
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.
53 NOAA storm reports from Wayne 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 | Mar 30, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Wildfires | Mar 14, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jul 29, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Dec 10, 2021 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 3, 2020 |
| 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 22, 2015 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
131 since 1996: 38 flash floods and 93 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 26, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 8, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Nov 4, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 3, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 24, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Mar 24, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 16, 2023 | $25,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 14, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 26, 2024. The second major severe weather outbreak for the month occurred on the 26th for the Quad State region. On the synoptic scale, a shortwave trough centered in the middle of the country with a 60 kt mid-level jet moved across northern Arkansas. A weak surface low was moving into SE Missouri during the morning with a secondary low located further northwest. A warm frontal boundary was draped across our area. A bowing…
Flash Flood · Jul 8, 2024. Convection developed during the afternoon of the 8th with activity most widespread between 1200-1700CST. PW values of 2-2.25 inches, bolstered by moisture from Hurricane Beryl to the southwest, resulted in torrential rainfall rates that produced isolated flooding issues. Additionally, a landspout formed south of I-57 in Mississippi County, reported via several photos and videos. Effective bulk shear was roughly 30…
Flood · Nov 4, 2024. Multiple rounds of training heavy rain along a slow moving frontal boundary affected Southern and Eastern Missouri from the 4th through the 6th of November. Western fringes of the WFO Paducah county warning area in Carter County received 4-6 inches of rainfall in this span. Many locations further west and north from West Plains to Hillsboro in Missouri reached 7 to 10 inches of rainfall. Street flooding was report…
Flash Flood · Jul 3, 2024. Storms moved through Southeast Missouri during the late afternoon and early evening hours as a cold front crossed the region. A couple storms produced wind damage. Effective bulk shear was 30-35 kts while MLCAPE was 3000-4000 J/kg ahead of the front. PW values were very high, up to 2.4 inches, allowing for very high rainfall rates. Flash flooding occurred in Williamsville, which received a radar estimated 4 inches…
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 Wayne 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.