How much flood risk does Ballard County actually carry?
Ballard County lands at the 12.2th percentile of FEMA's National Risk Index for flooding, "Very Low" territory — among the lowest flood hazard in the country — with the hazard driven by inland rivers and flash flooding rather than the coast — FEMA's model puts a flood event here at about 3.1 times a year. That's a county-wide figure, not a per-address one — FEMA's parcel maps are a live lookup, not a bulk file.
Ballard County's flood-insurance compliance gap
Out of 158 homes FEMA counts inside Ballard County's mapped flood zone, 17 carry the flood policy federal law requires there — 10.8% compliance, short of full coverage. Across all residential structures in Ballard County, not just the ones FEMA mandates, 0.4% carry an NFIP policy — most flood damage nationally happens outside the mapped high-risk zone, so that broader number matters too.
How Ballard County compares nationally
Ballard County sits at rank 2782 of 3144 counties on FEMA's flood hazard scale (1 is worst) and rank 2603 of 3144 by population (1 is biggest). About 7,626 people live in Ballard County, Kentucky, spread over 247.095 square miles.
Checking a specific address in Ballard County
18 of Ballard County's 4,560 residential structures carry flood coverage of some kind, per FEMA's latest count — useful context, not a substitute for checking one parcel.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly which FEMA and Census tables feed Ballard County's numbers. The guide to what the Special Flood Hazard Area actually means explains why the mandatory-insurance rule exists and who it applies to.