179 flood insurance claims·$2.5M 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 Columbia County, Wisconsin. 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.
River flooding and flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominate the flood history of Columbia County, backed by 46 flood events and 24 flash flood events recorded over the last 30 years. Recent impacts include urban and small stream flooding in Pardeeville in June 2025, alongside repeated heavy rainfall from thunderstorms in Portage in September 2025. Additionally, a rainy period and snowmelt raised water levels to flood stage along the Wisconsin River at Portage in April 2025.
Properties in mapped Special Flood Hazard Areas require the most attention, as evidenced by the NFIP claim history. Zone A accounts for the vast majority of claims with 135 filings, averaging a payout of $20,362 and an average recorded water depth of 8 inches. However, properties outside designated high-risk zones should also remain prepared; unshaded Zone X properties recorded 23 claims with an average payout of $13,846 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches, while shaded Zone X properties averaged a recorded water depth of 19 inches across 2 claims.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
16% of Columbia County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
160 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 8 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 2008, with 50 claims and $570,615 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes, 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.
28 NOAA storm reports from Columbia County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Wisconsin flood stories →
11 federal disaster declarations since 1976, 1 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 5, 2008 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Aug 18, 2007 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | May 7, 2004 |
| Snow | Dec 11, 2000 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | May 26, 2000 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding | Jun 7, 1993 |
| Drought | Jun 17, 1976 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
70 since 1996: 24 flash floods and 46 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Jun 29, 2025 | $3,000 |
| Flood | Apr 24, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flood | Sep 13, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flood | Apr 1, 2025 | $3,000 |
| Flood | Jun 24, 2024 | $10,000 |
| Flood | Jun 23, 2024 | $20,000 |
| Flood | Jun 22, 2024 | $1,000 |
| Flood | Jun 22, 2024 | $20,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Jun 29, 2025. Numerous thunderstorms erupted over southern WI ahead of a slow moving cold front. Damaging downburst winds occurred in and around Timmerman Field in Milwaukee. Urban and small stream flooding occurred in Pardeeville and Janesville.
Flood · Apr 24, 2025. A rainy period over the upper and middle WI River valley raised water levels to flood stage at the Wisconsin River at Portage for late April.
Flood · Sep 13, 2025. An upper level disturbance and the proximity of a stationary front brought repeated thunderstorms with heavy rainfall to south central WI including Portage.
Flood · Apr 1, 2025. A rainy period over the upper and middle WI River valley and snow melt raised water levels to flood stage at the Wisconsin River at Portage for the early portion of April.
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 Columbia 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.