10 flood insurance claims·$14,186 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 Jefferson 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 general flooding from intense weather systems dominate the flood risk profile in Jefferson County, Nebraska. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 24 flash flood events and 18 flood events, resulting in 1 death.
Significant events illustrate this risk. In March 2019, a historic bomb cyclone combined frozen ground, snowmelt, and 1 to 2.5 inches of rain to trigger widespread moderate to major flooding across the region. Later that year in June 2018, slow-moving thunderstorms dropped 6 to 8 inches of rain over Jefferson County, causing considerable flooding. Severe thunderstorms in October 2019 produced 3 to 4 inches of rain across Saline and Jefferson counties, leading to additional flash flooding.
FEMA claim records show historical payouts across multiple zones. Properties in Zone UNKNOWN recorded 5 claims with an average payout of $1,717 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Zone A recorded 3 claims with an average payout of $1,066 and an average water depth of 1 inch. Zone X recorded 2 claims with an average payout of $3,985 and an average water depth of 0 inches. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within designated flood zones and areas susceptible to rapid accumulation from heavy rainfall.
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 1984, with 5 claims and $5,151 paid.
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.
12 NOAA storm reports from Jefferson County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Nebraska flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1967, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm And Straight-line Winds | Mar 18, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Dec 15, 2021 |
| 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 | May 6, 2015 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 1, 2010 |
| Severe Storms, Ice Jams, And Flooding | Mar 6, 2010 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm | Dec 22, 2009 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
42 since 1996: 24 flash floods and 18 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 29, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 28, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Mar 13, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 1, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 19, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 15, 2017 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 7, 2015 | $500,000 |
| Flood | May 7, 2015 | $5.0M · 1 killed |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 29, 2020. Slow moving storms led to heavy rain and flash flooding in many places across southeast Nebraska.
Flash Flood · Mar 28, 2019. A couple of severe thunderstorms produced large hail and heavy rain along the Nebraska and Kansas border.
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…
Flash Flood · Oct 1, 2019. Severe thunderstorms developed on a southwest to northeast orientated front across southeast Nebraska .The storms produced heavy rains with 3 to 4 inches rainfall reported across Saline and Jefferson Counties which caused flash flooding. A Supercell thunderstorm moving northeast across Pawnee County produced a funnel cloud north of Du Bois.
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 Jefferson 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.