43 flood insurance claims·$479,478 paid·8 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 Cuming 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 from summer thunderstorms and severe weather dominates Cuming County, with NOAA records over the last 30 years documenting 23 flash flood events and 15 general flood events.
Historic flooding occurred in March 2019 when a 971mb bomb cyclone moved out of the central Rockies, combining rapid snowmelt from 4 to 15 inches of snow cover, frozen ground with frost depths of 15 to 23 inches, and 1 to 2.5 inches of rain over a 48-hour period. Later that year in September 2019, strong nighttime thunderstorms produced heavy rainfall between 3.75 and 4.3 inches across areas including Lyons, Pilger, and Pender.
NFIP claim history shows that properties in Zone A experienced the highest impact with 32 claims, an average payout of $23,683, and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Additional claims occurred in Zone X (4 claims, average payout of $685, average depth of 1 inch), Zone X shaded (4 claims, average payout of $1,895, average depth of 0 inches), Zone X unshaded (2 claims, average payout of $21,770, average depth of 1 inch), and Zone unknown (1 claim, average payout of $0, average depth of 0 inches). Homeowners and real estate agents with properties in Zone A should pay the closest attention to these flood risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
16% of Cuming County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
38 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 2 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 25 claims and $440,390 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.
14 NOAA storm reports from Cuming County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Nebraska flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1967, 8 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm And Straight-line Winds | Mar 18, 2025 |
| Severe Storms And Straight-line Winds | May 12, 2022 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Dec 15, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Mar 9, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 17, 2018 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Jun 12, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 14, 2014 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 1, 2010 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
38 since 1996: 23 flash floods and 15 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 25, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 19, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Mar 14, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 13, 2019 | $300,000 |
| Flood | Mar 13, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 24, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 6, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 16, 2016 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jun 25, 2021. Heavy rain lead to flooding reports in Cuming County.
Flash Flood · Sep 19, 2019. Strong thunderstorms developed during the nighttime and lingered into the morning. Several flash flood warnings were issued between Wayne and Omaha. Thunderstorms produced 3.75 inches of rain at Lyons, 4.3 inches south of Pilger, and 4 inches at Pender.
Flood · Mar 14, 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…
Flash 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 Cuming 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.