21 flood insurance claims·$706,833 paid·4 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 Douglas 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.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms and rapid spring snowmelt dominates the flood risk in Douglas County, Wisconsin. Over the last 30 years, the National Centers for Environmental Information recorded 17 flash flood events and 7 general flood events. Recent events include torrential overnight rainfall and saturated soils that caused road closures in September 2019, as well as record-breaking winter snowpack followed by April warmth and heavy rain in April 2023.
National Flood Insurance Program records show that flood claims span multiple zones. Zone X properties account for 11 claims with an average payout of $71,621 and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. Zone A properties account for 7 claims with an average payout of $33,465 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in both designated special flood hazard areas like Zone A and moderate-to-low risk areas like Zone X, where recorded claims demonstrate that damaging water accumulation still occurs.
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 3 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 2020, with 6 claims and $213,466 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.
14 NOAA storm reports from Douglas County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Wisconsin flood stories →
10 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jun 15, 2018 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jul 11, 2016 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 19, 2012 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Flooding, Severe Storms And Tornadoes | Apr 10, 2001 |
| Flood-07/20/99 | Jul 4, 1999 |
| Drought | Jun 17, 1976 |
| Heavy Rains & Flooding | Sep 10, 1972 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
24 since 1996: 17 flash floods and 7 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Apr 11, 2023 | $150,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 20, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 8, 2020 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 30, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 18, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Jun 18, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 17, 2018 | — |
| Flood | Oct 3, 2017 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Apr 11, 2023. Record breaking snowfall for the 2022-2023 winter season was received across all of northwest Wisconsin which was about 200% of normal snowfall. Much of this snowpack remained on the ground into April. Warm temperatures 10 to 20 degrees above normal during the second week of the month led to rapid snowmelt across the region with fast rises on area waterways. This above normal warmth was quickly followed by a late…
Flash Flood · Sep 20, 2021. A cold front moving east across the Upper Midwest propelled a cold front through northwest Wisconsin leading to the development of a line of storms during the afternoon. These storms produced sporadic wind damage and heavy rain and training of the storms led to some minor flash flooding in spots as well. While storms were exhibiting circulation in the low levels, no tornadoes were reported.
Flash Flood · Aug 8, 2020. A complex of storms moved across northwestern Wisconsin during the evening hours of the 7th. A few of the storms were marginally severe and produced small hail and gusty winds. Heavy rainfall combined with the slow movement of the storms lead to some minor flooding in spots.
Flash Flood · Sep 30, 2019. A warm front set up over the region during the early morning hours of the 30th. Torrential rainfall was reported overnight leading to saturated soils in the area. Additional showers and thunderstorms moved over these same areas during the late morning and early afternoon hours and led to some isolated flash flooding in Douglas County Wisconsin where water over the roadway led to a few closed roads.
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 Douglas 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.