6 flood insurance claims·$52,900 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 Mitchell 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 driven by slow-moving storms and heavy rainfall dominates the flood risk in Mitchell County, accounting for the vast majority of historical events over the last 30 years compared to standard riverine or general floods.
Recent NOAA storm data highlights this pattern across the region. On April 20, 2024, a shortwave trough generated a convective system that produced flooding across portions of the Permian Basin. Later that year, on September 2, 2024, a slow-moving upper-level low interacting with a stationary front caused repeated rounds of heavy rainfall within a tropical airmass, leading to significant flash flooding.
Homeowners and real estate professionals should pay the most attention to properties located within FEMA-designated Zone A, where historical National Flood Insurance Program records show claims with an average payout of $11,407 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch. Properties associated with unknown flood zones also carry risk, averaging $10,028 per claim with an average recorded water depth of 2 inches.
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 2 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 1992, with 3 claims and $18,022 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.
21 NOAA storm reports from Mitchell County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
14 federal disaster declarations since 1993, 1 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Wildfires | Apr 6, 2011 |
| Mitchell Fire Complex | Feb 27, 2011 |
| Wildfires | Mar 14, 2008 |
| Extreme Wildfire Threat | Nov 27, 2005 |
| Hurricane Rita | Sep 23, 2005 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
56 since 1996: 48 flash floods and 8 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Apr 20, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 2, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 16, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 12, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 3, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 3, 2022 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | May 31, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 28, 2021 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Apr 20, 2024. A shortwave trough ejecting out into the southern Great Plains aided in the development of a convective system across the Permian Basin. This convective system resulted in flooding across portions of the Permian Basin.
Flash Flood · Sep 2, 2024. A slow-moving upper-level low pressure over a stationary frontal boundary helped to generate widespread showers and thunderstorms across the region. Repeated rounds of moderate to heavy rainfall within a tropical airmass caused significant flash flooding across many Permian Basin and Southeast New Mexico areas.
Flash Flood · Sep 16, 2023. A complex of showers and thunderstorms developed across eastern New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle during the afternoon of September 15th. This merged into a mesoscale convective complex that moved southeast through much of southeast New Mexico and the Permian Basin resulting in strong to severe wind gusts and flash flooding for these areas during the early morning of September 16th.
Flash Flood · May 12, 2023. A cold front and ejecting shortwave trough resulted in widespread afternoon strong to severe thunderstorms resulting in large hail and strong winds. Additionally, flash flooding due to slow-moving and training thunderstorms.
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 Mitchell 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.