18 flood insurance claims·$1.2M paid·6 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 Jackson County, Tennessee. 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 dominates the flood character of Jackson County, accounting for 23 of the 26 recorded flood events over the last 30 years alongside 3 standard flood events.
Severe storms and heavy rainfall frequently drive this hazard, as demonstrated by events in February 2020, February 2021, March 2021, and February 2025. These episodes involved strong storm systems, slow-moving warm fronts, and heavy precipitation producing widespread flash flooding across the region.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that while high-risk Zone A properties filed the highest volume of claims at 12 claims with an average payout of $19,794 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches, properties in Zone X experienced higher severity. Zone X recorded 3 claims with an average payout of $338,034 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. Homeowners in both high-risk riverine areas and moderate-to-low risk Zone X locations should pay close attention to local flood risks, as severe rain events can produce significant damage across multiple zones.
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 5 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 2010, with 10 claims and $1.1M paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes and Severe Storms 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.
10 NOAA storm reports from Jackson County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Tennessee flood stories →
35 federal disaster declarations since 1969, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Jan 22, 2026 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 2, 2025 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 8, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornado | Mar 1, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Mar 25, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 19, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 27, 2017 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
26 since 1996: 23 flash floods and 3 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Feb 15, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Mar 28, 2021 | $424,630 |
| Flash Flood | Feb 28, 2021 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Feb 5, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 20, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 13, 2019 | $25,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 13, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Feb 6, 2019 | $10,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Feb 15, 2025. A major severe weather and flooding event unfolded across Middle Tennessee on February 15-16, 2025. As well above average moisture spread into the area, this helped set the stage for very heavy rainfall across Middle Tennessee. Showers and thunderstorms began early during the day on February 15th, and the primary threat with this first round was flooding. The most significant flooding was reported in Montgomery an…
Flash Flood · Mar 28, 2021. An historic flash flooding event affected the central third of Middle Tennessee from the early morning hours on March 27 through the day into the early morning hours on March 28. A warm front moved northward into Middle Tennessee early on March 27 before stalling near the I-40 corridor. Between 300-400 AM CDT, numerous showers and thunderstorms developed along the warm front, many of which became severe and produc…
Flash Flood · Feb 28, 2021. Numerous showers and thunderstorms affected Middle Tennessee during the evening hours on February 27, then again during the afternoon and evening hours on February 28. Several storms became severe and produced damaging winds, large hail, and flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Feb 5, 2020. After an unusually wet January, another strong storm system brought more heavy rainfall, flooding, and severe storms to parts of Middle Tennessee on February 5th. A line of strong to severe thunderstorms known as a QLCS (Quasi-linear Convective System) developed in northern Mississippi and moved across southern and eastern Middle Tennessee during the afternoon and evening hours. These storms spawned 6 weak tornado…
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 Jackson 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.