3 flood insurance claims·$104,937 paid·1 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 McIntosh 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 risk profile in McIntosh County, Oklahoma, supported by a historical mix of 53 flash flood events compared to only 1 general flood event over the last 30 years.
Severe weather events have repeatedly triggered heavy rainfall and localized flooding across the area. For example, strong thunderstorms produced locally heavy rainfall, damaging wind gusts, and tornadoes during an April 2021 event. Similarly, slow-moving thunderstorms driven by a low pressure center dropped locally heavy rainfall and caused isolated flash flooding in June 2021, while additional flash flooding events occurred in September 2023 and April 2025 due to active storm systems interacting with warm and cold fronts.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims filed in both Special Flood Hazard Area Zone A and moderate-to-low risk Zone X. Zone A claims averaged $28,332 with an average recorded water depth of 2 inches, while a single claim in Zone X recorded an average payout of $48,273 and an average water depth of 99 inches. Homeowners and real estate agents working with properties situated in designated Zone A floodplains, as well as those near low-lying drainage areas susceptible to sudden storm runoff, should pay the closest attention to these localized flood risks.
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 34 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 2021, with 1 claims and $48,273 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.
18 NOAA storm reports from McIntosh County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Oklahoma flood stories →
31 federal disaster declarations since 1973, 1 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 Storms And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 5, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 18, 2013 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Apr 21, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 31, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
54 since 1996: 53 flash floods and 1 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Apr 5, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 23, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 28, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 7, 2021 | $20,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 15, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 1, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 23, 2018 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Feb 23, 2018 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Apr 5, 2025. Strong to severe thunderstorms developed across portions of eastern Oklahoma during the early morning hours of the 4th, as lift associated with an approaching upper level disturbance increased north of a stationary front across northeastern Oklahoma and southern Arkansas. The strongest storms produced large hail up to golf ball size and damaging wind gusts.||Additional rounds of strong to severe thunderstorms occu…
Flash Flood · Sep 23, 2023. Scattered strong to severe thunderstorms developed across portions of eastern Oklahoma during the afternoon of the 23rd, along a retreating warm front that stretched across the area, and ahead of a cold front approaching from the northwest. The thunderstorms became more widespread across the area during the evening. The air mass ahead of the cold front became very unstable, and deep-layer wind shear increased with…
Flash Flood · Apr 28, 2021. Strong to severe thunderstorms moved through eastern Oklahoma during the morning of the 28th. These storms produced locally heavy rainfall that resulted in flash flooding, damaging wind gusts, and three tornadoes. Another round of thunderstorms developed across eastern Oklahoma during the evening of the 28th, as a cold front moved into the area. The strongest storms produced damaging wind.||Widespread heavy rainfa…
Flash Flood · Jun 7, 2021. A broad low pressure center in the middle and upper atmosphere moved from northern Texas to northeastern Oklahoma on the 6th and 7th. The first round of thunderstorms affected southeastern Oklahoma during the morning and afternoon hours of the 6th. Locally heavy rainfall occurred, which resulted in isolated flash flooding. ||A more pronounced and focused area of thunderstorms developed during the early morning hou…
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 McIntosh 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.