Flood waters filled the streets in the Meadows section of Boynton Beach, Fla., Friday, Jan. 10, 2014, trapping cars. Boynton Beach got nearly two feet of rain in a 24-hour period. (AP Photo/J Pat Carter)
Floods, big or small, can have devastating effects on communities, homes and families. In 2014, major flooding resulted in more than $351 million in claim payouts through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The average 2014 NFIP claim was $29,033, according to Insurance Information Insitute (I.I.I.) data gathered from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Congress created the NFIP in 1968 in response to the rising cost of taxpayer-funded disaster relief for flood victims and the increasing amount of damage caused by floods. The NFIP makes federally backed flood insurance available in communities that agree to adopt and enforce floodplain management ordinances to reduce future flood damage.
Related: 5 things you should know about flood insurance
The NFIP provides coverage for up to $250,000 for the structure of the home and up to $100,000 for personal possessions. NFIP earned premiums rose slightly to $3.56 billion in 2014 from $3.51 billion in 2013.
Using data from DHS and FEMA, I.I.I. found the following 10 U.S. states had the highest total amount of NFIP claim payouts from Oct. 1, 2013, through Sept. 30, 2014. Can you guess which state ranks No. 1?
A partially submerged car sits on a flooded section of Interstate 695 in Baltimore, Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2014, after heavy rains fell across the Mid-Atlantic region. Officials shut down the Baltimore beltway in both directions at Quarantine Road due to heavy flooding. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
10. Maryland
$6.93 million = Total amount of claim payments
434 = Total number of claims
Related: Lower flood insurance premiums for some Maryland residents
Cars are stranded along a flooded stretch of Interstate 75 in Hazel Park, Mich., Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2014. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
9. Michigan
$6.98 million = Total amount of claim payments
635 = Total number of claims
A home sits surrounded by floodwaters from Walnut Creek, Thursday, June 25, 2015, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
8. Iowa
$7.48 million = Total amount of claim payments
552 = Total number of claims
Jake Sojka, left, and his father Gregory Sojka, stand alongside their flooded home on Main Street in Bowmansville, N.Y., after Ellicott Creek crested its banks Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2014. (AP Photo/Gary Wiepert)
7. New York
$13.06 million = Total claim payments
1,401 = Total number of claims
Related: Some of New York's poorest residents can't get flood insurance, and there's little anyone can do about it
In this May 1, 2014, file photo, Marine unit police officer Robert Jonah walks through flood waters from the Schuylkill River on Main Street, Thursday, May 1, 2014, in the Manayunk neighborhood of Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
6. Pennsylvania
$14.36 million = Total amount of claim payments
785 = Total number of claims
This photo released by the Bossier City Sheriff's Office shows a sandbagged home during flooding from the Red River in the River Bluff subdivision of Bossier City, La., Monday, June 8, 2015. (Bill Davis/Bossier City Sheriff's Office via AP)
5. Louisiana
$14.73 million = Total claim payments
728 = Total number of claims
A Canada goose floats past a handicapped parking sign in a parking lot covered by the rising Ohio River, Monday, Feb. 24, 2014, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Al Behrman)
4. Ohio
$14.74 million = Total amount of claim payments
736 = Total number of claims
Firefighters rescue a family from their home, surrounded by floodwaters, in a mobile home park in Pelham, Ala., on Monday, April 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves)
3. Alabama
$51.81 million = Total amount of claim payments
1,365 = Total number of claims
El Paso water utilities workers walk toward a pump that is emptying a storm water drainage pond in El Paso, Texas, Thursday, Sept. 18, 2014. Heavy rains caused street flooding and other incidents in Far West Texas and Southeastern New Mexico. (AP Photo/Juan Carlos Llorca)
2. Texas
$58.52 million = Total amount of claim payments
1,975 = Total number of claims
Related: 7 'mythbusters' from FEMA for Texas flood victims
Residents walk near a truck stuck in deep water and mud on Piedmont Street after flood-water damage caused by torrential rains in Pensacola, Fla., Wednesday, April 30, 2014. (AP Photo/G.M. Andrews)
1. Florida
$115.84 million = Total amount of claim payments
3,823 = Total number of claims
Related: National Flood Insurance Program sets up call center to help policyholders