159 flood insurance claims·$6.0M 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 Ellis County, Texas. 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 storms dominates the flood risk in Ellis County, Texas, accounting for 100 recorded events and two deaths over the last 30 years, alongside nine standard flood events. Recent NOAA storm data illustrates this pattern, including heavy rainfall and flash flooding driven by a slow-moving upper low in January 2025, and training thunderstorms along a slow-moving front in April 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood impacts extend significantly into areas outside designated high-risk flood zones. Zone X leads the county with 97 claims, carrying an average payout of $57,795 and an average recorded water depth of 13 inches. Zone A follows with 43 claims, averaging a $56,087 payout and an average water depth of 3 inches, while smaller numbers of claims occurred in Zone X_UNSHADED, Zone UNKNOWN, and Zone X_SHADED.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties in both standard flood zones and moderate-to-low risk Zone X areas, where historical claims demonstrate that significant flood depths and costly damages can occur outside traditional high-risk zones.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
22% of Ellis County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
55 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
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 2018, with 37 claims and $3.9M 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.
20 NOAA storm reports from Ellis County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
24 federal disaster declarations since 1989, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 26, 2024 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Tropical Storms Marco And Laura | Aug 23, 2020 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds And Flooding | May 4, 2015 |
| County Line Fire | Jun 18, 2011 |
| Hurricane Ike | Sep 7, 2008 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
109 since 1996: 100 flash floods and 9 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jan 30, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 30, 2025 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jan 30, 2025 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 30, 2025 | $20,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jan 29, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 30, 2024 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 30, 2024 | $20,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 10, 2024 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jan 30, 2025. A slow moving upper low generated multiple rounds of rain, some heavy, the night of January 29 into the morning of January 30 across North Texas. Much of the heavy rain and associated flooding occurred in and near the DFW Metroplex.
Flash Flood · Apr 30, 2025. A slow moving front and an upper trough generated scattered thunderstorms on April 29, and widespread showers and thunderstorms on April 30, across much of North and Central Texas. Some of these storms became severe with large hail and damaging winds, but the most impactful weather was flash flooding due to the slow movement of the front and the resulting ���training��� of thunderstorms along and near…
Flash Flood · Jan 29, 2025. A slow moving upper low generated multiple rounds of rain, some heavy, the night of January 29 into the morning of January 30 across North Texas. Much of the heavy rain and associated flooding occurred in and near the DFW Metroplex.
Flash Flood · May 30, 2024. Another complex of thunderstorms moved southeast through North and Central Texas during the day on May 30, producing scattered wind damage and severe hail along with some flash flooding. A second round of storms initiated along the dryline Thursday evening, producing more severe weather and flash flooding overnight into the early morning hours of May 31. After above normal rainfall throughout the month, grounds we…
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 Ellis 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.