With respect to safety during a flood, remember: TURN AROUND, DON’T DROWN.  Never drive through water of unknown depth.  A mere 6 inches of fast, moving water can knock down an adult and only 12 inches of fast, moving water can carry away a car.

Register for Emergency Alerts, including those for flash flooding, through the county’s Emergency Management website.  This site also has valuable information regarding evacuation routes, Black Creek Water levels and current information on impending and ongoing disaster activities.

The Bureau of Water Resources provides the information for monthly precipitation, water levels, and potent ionmetric water surface levels in our area. To view the latest water levels, please visit our Current Water Levels webpage.

To check the levels of Black Creek, you can find the current status (updated twice a day) at the weather.gov website.

Information regarding the St Johns River can be found at: NOAA tides and currents website.

Flood Damage is usually not covered by standard homeowner’s insurance policies.  Even if you do not live in a high flood hazard area, purchasing a flood insurance policy is highly recommended (this includes contents insurance for renters).  Clay County is a participant in the National Flood Insurance Program, so most homeowners located in low or moderate risk flood areas are eligible for flood insurance at a preferred rate.  Visit www.floodsmart.gov or call 1-877-336-2627 for more information on flood insurance and how to obtain it. Remember that policies typically do not take effect until 30 day after purchase.

Our website offers access to Flood Insurance Rate Maps for Clay County. To view the maps visit our Flood Maps webpage.  Begin at the FEMA index map to look up the map panel that corresponds with your location.  Then, select the respective panel and find your location to see your flood zone.

An address' flood zone can also be found using the County's interactive map.  Enter the address under the Find query and be sure to click on the "Flood Zone Data" layer.  

Finally, you may find your flood insurance rate map by visiting the FEMA Flood Maps Service Center. 

For more information and to view flood zone maps, please visit our Flood Maps webpage.

• The county’s Flood Plain Manager.  If an EC has been completed and filed with the county, the county’s Flood Plain Manager will be able to retrieve it from archives.
• Sellers of the property you’re buying. When purchasing a new home or business, check the flood zone. If you’re in a high-risk zone, request that the sellers provide a copy of the EC. If they don’t have an EC, ask if they can provide one before closing on the home.
• Developer or builder. In a high-risk flood zone, the developer or builder may have been required to attain an EC at the time construction began.
• The EC is sometimes included with property deeds.
• Hire a licensed land surveyor, professional engineer, or certified architect. The purpose of these qualified professionals is to determine the elevation around the building and certify whether the area around the property is below or above the advised flood elevation. Before hiring one of these professionals, ensure they are authorized by law to certify elevation information.

Perhaps the best way to ensure that your home is protected from flooding is to obtain a flood insurance policy.

You may also explore opportunities to limit your flood risk by personally pursuing flood mitigation activities.  Some examples include elevating electrical outlets, service equipment or other damage prone components, dry or wet flood proofing, berm construction, or building elevation, demolition or relocation.

You can also work to limit your risk by correcting sewer back-up problems and ensuring that nearby streams, ditches and storm drains are maintained to prevent obstruction.  Per Clay County Ordinance 2006-59, it is illegal to dump trash, debris, chemicals, or to discharge any material other than rainwater into stormwater systems, streams and other surfaces.  To report a problem with a county owned drainage system, call Clay County Public Works at 904-269-6335.  To report an illicit discharge, call Clay County Engineering at 904-269-6301.  Both departments also have pages on the county website.

County officials are available to speak directly to members of the public regarding questions on how to protect their homes from flood damage.  The Clay County Floodplain Manager can be reached at 904-529-3825 and the County’s Building Official can be reached at 904-269-6307.

You can view and/or download a map of Clay County's evacuation zones on our Emergency Management's Evacuation and Flood Zones webpage.

Any proposed development in the Special Flood Hazard Area requires an approved Floodplain Development Permit. Clay County floodplain regulations define development as  any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including but not limited to, buildings or other structures, tanks, temporary structures, temporary or permanent storage of equipment or materials, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavations, drilling operations or any other land disturbing operations. For more information regarding floodplain development as well to obtain a copy of a Floodplain Development Permit, please visit our Development within a Flood Plain webpage.

 Residential finished floor elevations, including basements and machinery and/or equipment which are in numbered A zones must have their lowest floors elevated to at least one foot above the base flood elevation or the design flood elevation, whichever is higher.  Residential finished floor elevations, including basements located in un-numbered A zones must be elevated to at least three feet above the highest adjacent grade (HAG).  All manufactured homes placed in the Special Flood Hazard Area shall be elevated such that the bottom of the lowest horizontal member is one foot above the Base Flood Elevation in numbered A zones or 3 feet above the HAG in an un-numbered A zone.

These elevations must be substantiated through the submission of Elevation Certificates completed at appropriate stages of construction in order to substantiate elevation compliance.

No development, including but not limited to site improvements and land disturbing activity involving fill or regrading, shall be authorized in the regulatory floodway unless a Floodway Encroachment Analysis (No-Rise Study) is submitted and approved by the county.  This Floodway Encroachment Analysis must be signed and sealed by a registered Professional Engineer and must demonstrate that the proposed development or land disturbing activity will not result in any increase in the base flood elevation.  No floodplain permit will be granted in the absence of an approved Floodway Encroachment Analysis. Where the Floodplain Administrator has determined that the development activity qualifies as a minor project or is demonstrated to be located within a floodway Conveyance Shadow, the submittal of an analysis may not be required.

Any proposed development located in a designated wetland should be vetted through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, for review and any necessary permitting.