6 flood insurance claims·$20,130 paid
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 Sitka City and Borough, 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.
Standard river and stream flooding dominates the recorded flood history in Sitka City and Borough, accounting for 15 out of 16 events over the last 30 years, alongside a single flash flood event.
Historical events documented in the area include significant flooding in May and June of 2023. A weather front in early June 2023 brought heavy rainfall and rapid snowmelt to local headwaters, causing high water and flooding along regional rivers and streams that impacted local communities and roadways. Additionally, a prolonged period of below-average spring temperatures combined with an above-average winter snowpack resulted in dynamic river breakup flooding and ice jams spanning mid-May through early June 2023.
Properties situated within FEMA-designated Zone A face the primary financial risk, having accumulated 4 historical NFIP claims with an average payout of $20,130 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within Zone A and near rivers and streams subject to seasonal snowmelt and heavy rainfall.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 4 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 2009, with 2 claims and $20,130 paid.
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.
10 NOAA storm reports from Sitka City and Borough describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Alaska flood stories →
16 since 1996: 1 flash floods and 15 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | May 31, 2023 | — |
| Flood | May 14, 2023 | — |
| Flood | May 13, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jun 1, 2023 | — |
| Flood | May 9, 2022 | — |
| Flood | May 20, 2015 | $300 |
| Flood | May 6, 2014 | $1,000 |
| Flood | May 20, 2013 | $300,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · May 31, 2023. A weather front brought from 1 to 2 inches of rain to the headwaters of Birch Creek and Crooked Creek. The rain fell on a residual winter snowpack and resulted in significant runoff due to the combination of rapid snowmelt and the heavy rainfall. This caused high water and flooding along rivers and streams draining the region including Crooked Creek and Birch Creek which impacted the community of Central and porti…
Flood · May 14, 2023. A prolonged period of well-below-average spring temperatures combined with an above-average winter snowpack created a dynamic breakup of the Yukon River. This resulted in numerous ice jams and snowmelt flooding on the Yukon River. Breakup flooding began on May 12th in eastern Alaska in Eagle and ended on June 3rd in the Yukon River delta at the Bering Sea coast at the community of Emmonak. The primary cause of thi…
Flood · May 13, 2023. A prolonged period of well-below-average spring temperatures combined with an above-average winter snowpack created a dynamic breakup of the Yukon River. This resulted in numerous ice jams and snowmelt flooding on the Yukon River. Breakup flooding began on May 12th in eastern Alaska in Eagle and ended on June 3rd in the Yukon River delta at the Bering Sea coast at the community of Emmonak. The primary cause of thi…
Flood · Jun 1, 2023. A weather front brought from 1 to 2 inches of rain to the headwaters of Birch Creek and Crooked Creek. The rain fell on a residual winter snowpack and resulted in significant runoff due to the combination of rapid snowmelt and the heavy rainfall. This caused high water and flooding along rivers and streams draining the region including Crooked Creek and Birch Creek which impacted the community of Central and porti…
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 Sitka City and Borough 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.