160 flood insurance claims·$3.0M paid·7 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 Colusa County, California. 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.
Prolonged riverine flooding driven by winter storms and heavy precipitation dominates the flood character of Colusa County, backed by 27 recorded flood events and one death against only a single flash flood over the last 30 years according to the NOAA Storm Events Database.
Recent history illustrates this pattern. A cold winter storm system in February 2025 brought heavy rain, rock slides, and gusty winds to the region. Later that year, a prolonged period of wet weather from December 24 to December 26, 2025, delivered heavy snowfall, strong winds gusting between 50 and 80 mph across the valley, numerous downed trees, and thousands of power outages.
Property owners and real estate agents should note that claims occur across multiple zones, with the highest claim volumes concentrated in shaded and unshaded Zone X designations as well as Zone A. Specifically, Zone X_SHADED recorded 48 claims with an average water depth of 17 inches and an average payout of $19,257, while Zone A recorded 47 claims with an average water depth of 2 inches and an average payout of $27,182. Residents in both designated flood hazard areas and moderate-to-low risk zones should pay close attention to these historical impacts.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
56% of Colusa County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
108 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 7 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 1998, with 61 claims and $726,516 paid, the year of Severe Winter Storms and 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 Colusa County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the California flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1964, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides | Jan 8, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Dec 27, 2022 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 24, 2019 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides | Feb 1, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, And Landslides | Dec 17, 2005 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Feb 2, 1998 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Mud And Landslides | Dec 28, 1996 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
28 since 1996: 1 flash floods and 27 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Dec 26, 2025 | — · 1 killed |
| Flood | Dec 24, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Oct 13, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Feb 7, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Feb 6, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Nov 22, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Nov 21, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Nov 20, 2024 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Dec 26, 2025. A prolonged period of wet weather brought heavy snowfall and strong winds to the Sierra Nevada. Heaviest snowfall was observed from 12/24-12/26 when snow levels came down below the mountain passes. Snowfall measurements over the 12/24-12/26 timeframe were around 2-5 ft per Caltrans, Ski resorts, and UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab. Southerly wind gusts of 50-80 mph were observed as well across the Valley, foot…
Flood · Dec 24, 2025. A prolonged period of wet weather brought heavy snowfall and strong winds to the Sierra Nevada. Heaviest snowfall was observed from 12/24-12/26 when snow levels came down below the mountain passes. Snowfall measurements over the 12/24-12/26 timeframe were around 2-5 ft per Caltrans, Ski resorts, and UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab. Southerly wind gusts of 50-80 mph were observed as well across the Valley, foot…
Flood · Oct 13, 2025. An early season storm system brought moderate to heavy snowfall to portions of the southern Cascades and Sierra Nevada mainly above 6500 feet. Storm total snow amounts of 6 to 21 inches were generally observed at and above 6500 feet. Widespread precipitation also brought localized roadway flooding to the lower elevations. The storm arrived on October 13th and lasted through the very early morning hours on October…
Flood · Feb 7, 2025. A cold winter storm system brought another round of heavy snow, rain, rock slides and gusty winds from February 6th through February 7th. Generally 4 to 12 inches were observed above 3000 feet in Shasta County and the Coast Range and above 5000 feet in the Sierra and Southern Cascades, with up to 18 inches at the higher peaks. Interstate 5 closed for about 4 hours at Pollard Flat due to heavy snow. Traffic cameras…
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 Colusa 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.