Floodplain Management
The City of Memphis is a participant in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a program administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Memphis (community number 470177) has been a member of the program since December 1, 1982. Although FEMA administers the program, the regulations are locally enforced by the City of Memphis.
*Note: this page is about flood zones established under the NFIP and is primarily due to riverine flooding (caused by Nonconnah Creek, the Wolf/Loosahatchie Rivers, and backwater from the Mississippi River) and not due to localized stormwater drainage concerns:
CONTACTS:
Any questions regarding Memphis’ involvement in the National Flood Insurance Program can be directed to the Division of Engineering’s Civil Design Bureau at 901-636-6700.
- If you are currently experiencing life-threatening flooding, regardless of cause, call 911.
- Blocked inlet or other maintenance concern? Please contact the Division of Public Works, Drain Maintenance Department.
- Questions regarding the Mississippi River floodwall, levee, and pump stations? Please contact the Division of Public Works, Environmental Engineering Department Flood Control Emergency Section.
- Questions regarding stormwater quality management, such as pollution in the stormwater drainage system or erosion prevention/sediment control? Please contact the Memphis Stormwater Program.
MAPPING:
- To view the National Flood Hazard Layer, displaying FEMA floodplain data, feel free to view our Drainage Masterplan Study web viewer. This can be utilized as a quick reference to view flood zones in the city and does not serve as the official record of flood zones in the City.
- To view an official copy of your Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM), visit FEMA’s Map Service Center at http://msc.fema.gov. Type in your address in the search bar and follow the instructions
- You can also view other current and historical FEMA products under the same link, by clicking on “Search All Products,” then on the next page Selecting “Tennessee > Shelby > Memphis City Of” under the list of drop-down boxes
REGULATIONS:
- Development in floodplains is locally regulated by the Memphis/Shelby County Unified Development Code (the “UDC”). To access the latest version of the UDC on the Develop901 website, click here.
PERMIT APPLICATIONS:
- All development within the regulatory floodplain requires a Floodplain Development Permit. The City utilizes the Develop901 Citizen Access Portal for permitting
- Please click here for the link to this portal.
- Click on the “Engineering Permits” tab (you may need to log in with your portal credentials)
- Under “Record Type,” click on “Engineering” and then click on “Floodplain Development Permit”
USEFUL LINKS
For more information regarding the NFIP, please see the links below: