56 flood insurance claims·$430,094 paid
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 Union County, Ohio. 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.
Union County experiences flood risk dominated by standard river and creek flooding alongside severe flash flood events produced by summer thunderstorms. Over a thirty-year period, NOAA records show 44 flood events and 15 flash flood events. Recent incidents include heavy rain and flash flooding from a cold front on June 5, 2024, as well as widespread showers and thunderstorms driven by an upper-level disturbance on July 6, 2022.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that property damage occurs both inside and outside mapped high-risk areas. Zone A properties account for 29 claims with an average payout of $11,888 and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches. Meanwhile, Zone X properties account for 17 claims with an average payout of $9,695 and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches, with additional claims occurring in unshaded Zone X and unknown zones.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within FEMA-designated Zone A due to higher average payouts and water depths, while noting that properties in Zone X also face documented flood and water damage risks.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
6% of Union County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
31 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 1997, with 16 claims and $189,725 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.
1 NOAA storm reports from Union County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Ohio flood stories →
13 federal disaster declarations since 1978.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Tornadoes | Mar 14, 2024 |
| Severe Storms | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Severe Wind Storm Associated With Tropical Depression Ike | Sep 14, 2008 |
| Record Snow And Near Record Snow | Mar 7, 2008 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides | Dec 22, 2004 |
| Snow | Dec 22, 2004 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Aug 27, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
59 since 1996: 15 flash floods and 44 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 5, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Jul 24, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jul 17, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Jul 6, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Jun 10, 2021 | — |
| Flood | Mar 28, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Sep 7, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Jun 19, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jun 5, 2024. A cold front moved through the Ohio Valley, causing showers and thunderstorms out ahead of it. Some of the storms produced heavy rain and flash flooding.
Flood · Jul 24, 2023. Scattered thunderstorms developed as a low pressure system moved through the Ohio Valley.
Flood · Jul 17, 2022. Showers with embedded thunderstorms developed ahead of a low pressure system moving through the Great Lakes region.
Flood · Jul 6, 2022. An upper level disturbance produced widespread showers and thunderstorms across central Ohio during the overnight hours.
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 Union 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.