22 flood insurance claims·$515,812 paid·3 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 Kiowa County, Oklahoma. 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 severe weather events dominates the flood risk profile in Kiowa County, Oklahoma, accounting for 37 out of 45 recorded flood events over the last 30 years, alongside 8 general flood events. This risk is driven by intense weather patterns, such as the widespread severe storms and unstable environments that triggered flash flooding in May 2019, when scattered supercells merged into linear systems across the region.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that claims have occurred across multiple zones. Zone X properties recorded 11 claims with an average payout of $35,090 and an average recorded water depth of 18 inches. Properties in unknown zones logged 5 claims with an average payout of $31,303 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. Zone A properties experienced 4 claims with an average payout of $8,958 and an average water depth of 2 inches, while Zone X unshaded properties recorded 2 claims with an average payout of $78 and an average water depth of 0 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in Zone X and unmapped or unknown zones, as these areas have accounted for the highest average claim payouts and greater recorded water depths during flood events.
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 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 2007, with 4 claims and $100,880 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding, Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes and Severe Storms, Tornadoes, 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.
6 NOAA storm reports from Kiowa County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Oklahoma flood stories →
36 federal disaster declarations since 1983, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Sunny Fire | Dec 19, 2025 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 8, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 8, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Oct 26, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 7, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 28, 2017 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Nov 27, 2015 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
45 since 1996: 37 flash floods and 8 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 25, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Apr 23, 2019 | — |
| Flood | Apr 23, 2019 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 20, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 7, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 26, 2016 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 23, 2015 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 16, 2015 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 25, 2019. Scattered supercells merged into a linear system that produced a variety of severe weather on the 25th.
Flood · Apr 23, 2019. A cold front brought thunderstorms with isolated severe wind gusts on the 22nd into the 23rd.
Flash Flood · May 20, 2019. An extremely unstable environment led to widespread severe weather across Texas and Oklahoma on the 20th into the morning of the 21st.
Flash Flood · Oct 7, 2018. A warm front lifted north through Oklahoma during the day on the 7th, producing numerous thunderstorms.
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 Kiowa 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.