164 flood insurance claims·$1.9M paid·4 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 Mohave County, Arizona. 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.
Flash flooding from intense summer thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Mohave County, accounting for the vast majority of historical flood events and associated fatalities. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 656 flash flood events resulting in 8 deaths, compared to 41 general flood events. Recent activity illustrates this pattern, including flash flooding driven by tropical moisture from the remnants of Pacific Hurricane Priscilla in October 2025, and isolated thunderstorm flooding fueled by monsoon moisture in August 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood risks extend beyond designated high-risk areas. Zone A properties experienced the highest claim volume with 100 claims averaging an $18,660 payout and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. However, properties in Zone X experienced higher severity per incident, with 17 claims averaging a $41,908 payout and an average recorded water depth of 23 inches. Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 20 claims with an average payout of $14,277 and an average water depth of 4 inches, while Zone X_SHADED saw 16 claims averaging $3,402 with an average depth of 2 inches. Zone UNKNOWN recorded 11 claims averaging $8,509 with an average depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within Zone A, as well as those in various Zone X designations where significant average payouts and recorded water depths demonstrate substantial flood exposure during intense precipitation events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
26% of Mohave County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
136 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 5 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 1983, with 43 claims and $432,891 paid, the year of Flooding and Severe Storms & Flooding.
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.
11 NOAA storm reports from Mohave County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Arizona flood stories →
15 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Willow Fire | Aug 8, 2015 |
| Dean Peak Fire | Jul 1, 2013 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Jan 18, 2010 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Hulet Fire-06-11-2005 | Jun 11, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Feb 10, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Dec 28, 2004 |
| Heavy Rain & High Winds | Jan 15, 1985 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
697 since 1996: 656 flash floods and 41 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Sep 28, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 28, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2025 | $5,000 |
| Flood | Aug 16, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Nov 15, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Oct 11, 2025 | $1,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Sep 28, 2025. Low pressure moved very slowly east from the eastern Pacific across the Mojave Desert, triggering scattered thunderstorms for a few days. Several storms produced flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Sep 26, 2025. Low pressure moved very slowly east from the eastern Pacific across the Mojave Desert, triggering scattered thunderstorms for a few days. Several storms produced flash flooding.
Flood · Aug 16, 2025. High pressure to the east and a trough to the west advected in a weak push of monsoon moisture, fueling isolated thunderstorms over northwest Arizona. A few produced severe weather and flooding.
Flash Flood · Nov 15, 2025. Low pressure moving in from the Pacific advected in near-record precipitable water for November. Most of the impacts were in California, with only one report just east of the Colorado River.
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 Mohave County 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.