11 flood insurance claims·$288,577 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 Butler County, Nebraska. 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 and general flooding from summer thunderstorms dominate the flood risk profile in Butler County, Nebraska, with the NOAA Storm Events Database recording 17 floods and 14 flash floods over the last 30 years.
Recent weather patterns illustrate these hazards. On May 21, 2024, an amplified upper-level trough and stationary surface front brought elevated convection and heavy precipitation to the region. Additionally, lingering river flooding affected parts of the area into early July 2024 following crests at the end of June.
Federal insurance records show that properties located in Zone A experience the most significant impacts, accounting for 9 historical claims with an average payout of $35,892 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inches. An additional 2 claims were filed under an unknown zone, averaging a $719 payout with an average recorded water depth of 0 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents with properties in Zone A should pay the closest attention to flood risks and insurance requirements.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 1 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 2019, with 3 claims and $83,688 paid, the year of Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, 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.
11 NOAA storm reports from Butler County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Nebraska flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1967, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm And Straight-line Winds | Mar 18, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 20, 2024 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Mar 9, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Jun 12, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 1, 2014 |
| Severe Storms, Ice Jams, And Flooding | Mar 6, 2010 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm | Dec 22, 2009 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 22, 2008 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
31 since 1996: 14 flash floods and 17 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 21, 2024 | $25,000 |
| Flood | Jul 2, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 7, 2021 | — |
| Flood | Mar 13, 2019 | — |
| Flood | May 1, 2018 | $1,000 |
| Flood | Aug 16, 2017 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 16, 2017 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 27, 2016 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 21, 2024. Troughing over the western CONUS brought southwesterly flow aloft over the central and northern Plains for the duration of this event. In the couple of days leading up to May 21st, the upper-level flow pattern amplified as a trough deepened over the northern Rockies. This trough then ejected out into the central Plains on the 21st. At the surface, a stationary front developed and stretched across central Nebraska…
Flood · Jul 2, 2024. At the beginning of July, river flooding was still ongoing along portions of the Missouri River extending from east-central Nebraska/southwest Iowa to the southern Nebraska border. Most of the length of the river crested at the end of June, so the greatest impacts are addressed in June StormData. However, sections of I-29 and the I-29/I680 junction remained closed through the first week of July as flood waters rec…
Flash Flood · Aug 7, 2021. A midlevel shortwave moved through the area producing storms with severe criteria hail and wind gusts. In Omaha, 2 to 3 inches of rain fell over about an hour which led to a flash flood warning being issued. Flash flooding washed through basement apartments, swept up cars, and heaved pavement in low-lying areas of the Omaha metro area. The City of Omaha Public Works office estimates the damage to the city near $1.…
Flood · Mar 13, 2019. A 971mb bomb cyclone moved out of the central Rockies on Wednesday, March 13, 2019 and helped to create widespread, moderate to major, and in many cases historic, flooding across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa. From 4 to 15 inches of snow cover remained across the mid Missouri River valley, and the ground was frozen with existing frost depths of 15 to 23 inches. Warm temperatures allowed all of the snow to rapi…
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 Butler 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.