Flood Zone Maps

Flood zone maps, also called “Flood Insurance Rate Maps” or “FIRMs” are used to identify the flood risk to properties. Flood hazard areas identified on the Flood Insurance Rate Map are identified as a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA). SFHA are defined as the area that will be inundated by the flood event having a 1-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.  The low- and moderate-risk zones are represented on the maps by the letter “X”, "0.2 PCT" or an “X” that is shaded. The inland high-risk zones are labeled with designations such as “AO”, “AE”, or “AH” The areas of minimal flood hazard, which are the areas outside the SFHA and higher than the elevation of the 0.2-percent-annual-chance flood, are labeled Zone C or Zone X (unshaded).

There is a nationwide effort by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to update the nation’s flood hazard data and provide it in a detailed, digital format. This FEMA effort is referred to as map modernization and has evolved as a growing number of industries were impacted by out-of-date flood data.