123 flood insurance claims·$1.0M 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 Yuma 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 summer thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Yuma County, AZ, with NOAA records showing 56 flash flood events compared to 16 general flood events over the last 30 years. This severe weather threat is driven by moist, unstable conditions, southeasterly flow aloft from subtropical high pressure, and upper-level divergence from Pacific troughs. Recent historical activity includes heavy thunderstorm events on August 25, 2025, which brought widespread flash flooding to southwest Arizona.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that risk varies significantly by zone. Zone A properties account for the majority of claims with 98 filings averaging $14,765 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Meanwhile, Zone X properties recorded fewer claims (6 total) but averaged a higher payout of $18,417 and an average recorded water depth of 99 inches. Zone UNKNOWN recorded 15 claims with an average payout of $6,882 and a 2-inch average water depth, while Zone X_UNSHADED and Zone X_SHADED each recorded minimal claims with $500 average payouts and 0 inches of average water depth.
Property owners and real estate agents in Zone A and Zone X should pay the closest attention to these flood risks, given the historical concentration of higher-value payouts and significant water depths associated with those designations.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
4% of Yuma County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
102 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 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 1993, with 54 claims and $645,687 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes & 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.
55 NOAA storm reports from Yuma County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Arizona flood stories →
6 federal disaster declarations since 1983, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding | Jan 5, 1993 |
| Heavy Rain & High Winds | Jan 15, 1985 |
| Flooding | Jun 16, 1983 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
72 since 1996: 56 flash floods and 16 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Sep 27, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 25, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Sep 18, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Sep 4, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 4, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 4, 2025 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 4, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 4, 2025 | $30,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Sep 27, 2025. A slow-moving low pressure system brought several rounds of showers and thunderstorms over multiple days through much of the region. Activity on the 25th was mostly concentrated across higher terrain areas of eastern AZ, fueled by MLCAPE values approaching 2000 J/kg. Strong to severe thunderstorms developed during the afternoon hours, producing rainfall accumulations of over 2 inches in less than one hour across t…
Flash Flood · Aug 25, 2025. The environment across south-central and southwest Arizona on August 25th was primed for strong to severe thunderstorms with very moist and unstable conditions in place. The synoptic pattern featured a subtropical ridge of high pressure centered over northern New Mexico, promoting southeasterly flow aloft over Arizona and allowing for moisture advection into the region, while a Pacific trough to the west promoted…
Flood · Sep 18, 2025. The combination of an upper-level low off the CA coast and the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Mario resulted in a significant moisture increase with PWATs increasing upwards of 1.8-2.0 across most of southwest AZ. The aforementioned features also provided strong upper-level forcing to result in widespread showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon hours. With MLCAPE values maxing out at 1500 J/kg along with the…
Flood · Sep 4, 2025. An upper-level trough moving through the area providing strong upper-level ascent combined with MLCAPE values between 1500-3000 J/kg and PWAT values between 1.8-2.0 (associated with the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Lorena) resulted in numerous showers and thunderstorms across much of western AZ and southern CA. A cluster of strong to severe thunderstorms developed during the late afternoon hours over Yuma County a…
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 Yuma 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.