63 flood insurance claims·$1.1M paid·5 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 Nevada 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.
Standard riverine and general floods dominate the historical record over flash floods, accounting for 42 recorded events and two deaths compared to four flash flood events over the last 30 years. Recent impacts are exemplified by storms such as the February 2025 atmospheric river system, which brought 5 to 10 inches of rain over the mountains and 3 to 6 inches into the foothills alongside road flooding, mud, and rocks. Similarly, a strong winter storm in mid-February 2025 delivered 1 to 6 inches of rain and 2 to nearly 4 feet of heavy snow above 4,500 feet, resulting in flooded roads and downed trees in mountain and foothill areas.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data shows payouts across multiple zones, led by Zone A with 35 claims averaging $35,743 and an average recorded water depth of 5 inches. Zone X accounts for 19 claims averaging $16,266 with an average recorded water depth of 5 inches, while Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 6 claims averaging $35,214 with an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Zone D and unknown zones account for minimal claims. Property owners in Zone A and unshaded or standard Zone X areas should pay the most attention to flood risk, as these zones have experienced the highest concentration of historical claims and average water depths of 4 to 5 inches.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
17% of Nevada County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
42 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 2017, with 15 claims and $442,412 paid, the year of Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides.
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.
21 NOAA storm reports from Nevada County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the California flood stories →
23 federal disaster declarations since 1964, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 9, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 21, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Dec 27, 2022 |
| Wildfires | Jul 14, 2021 |
| Jones Fire | Aug 18, 2020 |
| Wildfires | Aug 14, 2020 |
| Lobo Fire | Oct 9, 2017 |
| Wildfires | Oct 8, 2017 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
46 since 1996: 4 flash floods and 42 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 27, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 26, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Dec 25, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Dec 22, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Dec 21, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Feb 13, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Feb 1, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Feb 5, 2024 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 27, 2025. A high amount of atmospheric moisture in the region interacted with a short-wave trough, allowing for widespread heavy precipitation. This was day five of an extended push of monsoon moisture that produced heavy rain, localized flooding, strong outflow winds.
Flash Flood · Aug 26, 2025. A high amount of atmospheric moisture in the region interacted with a short-wave trough, allowing for widespread heavy precipitation. This was day four of an extended push of monsoon moisture that produced heavy rain, localized flooding, strong outflow winds.
Flood · Dec 25, 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 22, 2025. A series of atmospheric rivers brought moderate to heavy precipitation to interior northern California in the third week of December through the Christmas holiday. A Convergence Zone set up over Redding/Shasta County around 1 PM on Sunday, December 21. Heavy rain fell until around 7 PM, where there was a lull before another line redeveloped and brought additional moderate to heavy rain into the late evening. Over…
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 Nevada 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.