18 flood insurance claims·$256,605 paid·2 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 Major 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 thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Major County, OK, accounting for 16 of the 25 recorded flood events over the last 30 years, with general floods making up the remaining 9 events.
These storms frequently develop from organized weather systems, such as the severe weather and linear storm systems that produced flash flooding in May 2018 and May 2019. Heavy rainfall can also arrive via complexes moving south out of Kansas, as occurred during the multi-round storm event in June 2018.
National Flood Insurance Program records reflect the differing risk levels between mapped zones. Properties located in high-risk Zone A have experienced 15 claims with an average payout of $20,626 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. In contrast, Zone X properties have recorded 3 claims with an average payout of $4,546 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties situated in Zone A, where historical claims indicate a significantly higher risk of deeper floodwaters and costly damages.
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 9 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 2008, with 11 claims and $237,099 paid, the year of Severe Storms and Flooding 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.
4 NOAA storm reports from Major County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Oklahoma flood stories →
33 federal disaster declarations since 1974, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Jun 14, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 8, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 8, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Oct 26, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Apr 30, 2019 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 13, 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.
25 since 1996: 16 flash floods and 9 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | May 24, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 20, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 24, 2018 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 24, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 1, 2015 | — |
| Flood | Apr 26, 2009 | — |
| Flood | Sep 12, 2008 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 12, 2008 | $400,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · May 24, 2019. Scattered supercells merged into a linear system that produced a variety of severe weather on the 24th.
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 · Jun 24, 2018. A line of storms came down out of Kansas just after midnight on the 24th, sweeping through northern Oklahoma. A second round formed right on the tail of the first, making its way southward through Oklahoma later that morning through the afternoon.
Flash Flood · Aug 1, 2015. Isolated to scattered weakly forced storms formed over parts of western Oklahoma on the 1st and lingered with little to no motion. One of these storms sat over Major county long enough to produce flash flooding.
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 Major 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.