25 flood insurance claims·$1.5M paid·2 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Nome Census Area, Alaska. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Less than 1% of Nome Census Area’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
21 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 20 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 2022, with 10 claims and $896,403 paid, the year of Severe Storm, Flooding, and Landslides.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
8 NOAA storm reports from Nome Census Area describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Alaska flood stories →
12 federal disaster declarations since 1989, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Remnants Of Typhoon Halong | Oct 8, 2025 |
| Severe Storm And Flooding | Oct 20, 2024 |
| Flooding | May 12, 2023 |
| Severe Storm, Flooding, And Landslides | Sep 15, 2022 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Nov 5, 2013 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Nov 8, 2011 |
| Severe Fall Storm, Tidal Surges, And Flooding | Sep 22, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Tidal Surges And Flooding | Oct 18, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
9 since 1996: 9 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Flood | Oct 12, 2025 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 21, 2024 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Aug 21, 2024 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Oct 20, 2024 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Aug 4, 2024 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Coastal Flood · Oct 12, 2025. Ex-Typhoon Halong brought high winds and severe coastal flooding to the West Coast of Alaska from October 11th to 13th. The storm caused severe coastal flooding in the Kuskokwim River Delta and high water levels extending north to the Yukon River Delta. These coastal areas all reported high wind gusts near or upwards of 70 to 80 mph. Inland areas as well as the Eastern Norton Sound saw impacts from damaging winds,…
Coastal Flood · Oct 21, 2024. A major fall storm quickly pushed across northern Alaska between October 20th and 23rd, with the low itself moving all the way inland. The storm brought coastal flooding, high winds, heavy precipitation, and a mix of precipitation, including a rain-snow mix and freezing rain. Over higher elevations in the Brooks Range, snow amounts approached 2 feet, with 12 to 15 inches across the higher elevation Interior regi…
Coastal Flood · Aug 21, 2024. The remnants of Typhoon Ampil brought strong and gusty winds up to 55 mph to the West Coast. These strong winds resulted in water levels to rise along the southern Seward Peninsula.
Coastal Flood · Oct 20, 2024. A major fall storm quickly pushed across northern Alaska between October 20th and 23rd, with the low itself moving all the way inland. The storm brought coastal flooding, high winds, heavy precipitation, and a mix of precipitation, including a rain-snow mix and freezing rain. Over higher elevations in the Brooks Range, snow amounts approached 2 feet, with 12 to 15 inches across the higher elevation Interior regi…
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Nome Census Area is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.