19 flood insurance claims·$477,429 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 Lewis 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 from heavy rainfall events dominates the flood history of Lewis County, accounting for 21 out of 24 recorded flood events in the NOAA Storm Events Database over the last 30 years. Prolonged weather patterns have driven significant regional impacts, such as a stationary frontal boundary that interacted with Gulf of Mexico moisture to produce heavy rain and flooding in February 2019, and training thunderstorms along a stalled cold front that dumped up to 8 inches of rain and caused major flash flooding in June 2014.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims across multiple zones, indicating flood risks extend beyond standard high-risk areas. Zone A accounts for 9 claims with an average payout of $37,867 and an average recorded water depth of 23 inches. Meanwhile, Zone X properties have also experienced vulnerability, recording 7 claims with an average payout of $26,215 and an average recorded water depth of 24 inches. An additional claim in Zone X_Unshaded averaged an intake of 2 inches of water with a $13,059 payout, while 2 claims in Zone Unknown averaged a $15,790 payout.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within designated high-risk Zone A, as well as properties in Zone X where historical claims demonstrate that significant water depths and property damage can still occur outside primary flood 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 22 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 8 claims and $218,352 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Straight-line Winds, and Tornadoes.
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.
9 NOAA storm reports from Lewis County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Tennessee flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1975, 3 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, Straight-line Winds, And Tornadoes | Mar 31, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Tornado | Mar 1, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | May 3, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 19, 2019 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 5, 2014 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Associated Flooding | Apr 25, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
24 since 1996: 21 flash floods and 3 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Feb 23, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 28, 2014 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 5, 2014 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2010 | $10,000 |
| Flood | May 2, 2010 | $430,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 2, 2009 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 2, 2009 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 2, 2009 | $25,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Feb 23, 2019. A stationary frontal boundary stalled near the Tennessee Valley for nearly a week in mid to late February 2019. Persistent southwest flow aloft brought copious amounts of Gulf of Mexico moisture northward and interacted with this boundary for many days, causing a prolonged period of heavy rain and flooding throughout Middle Tennessee from Tuesday, February 19 through early Sunday, February 24. Due to the heavy rai…
Flash Flood · Apr 28, 2014. A powerful upper level storm system moved across the region from April 28 into April 29, producing widespread showers and thunderstorms across Middle Tennessee. Several rounds of showers and storms moved across the region throughout the day on April 28, and again late in the day on April 29. Numerous reports of wind damage, flash flooding, large hail, and even one tornado were received from these storms. CoCoRaHS…
Flash Flood · Jun 5, 2014. A weak cold front moving southward out of Kentucky spawned numerous showers and thunderstorms throughout Middle Tennessee from the late evening hours on June 4 and continuing throughout the day on June 5. Many reports of damaging winds were received with these storms. In addition, as the front stalled across southwest Middle Tennessee early on June 5, thunderstorms began training across the same areas from Lobelvi…
Flash Flood · Aug 18, 2010. The remnants of a tropical depression interacted with a stationary front in Middle Tennessee, resulting in excessive rainfall across several counties east of Interstate 65 corridor. Area averaged between six and seven inches of rain, with some areas receiving as much as a foot of rainfall. Most of the severe damage across this area included impacted bridges, roads, and multiple types of structures.
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 Lewis 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.