864 flood insurance claims·$10.2M paid·14 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 San Bernardino 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.
San Bernardino County is predominantly characterized by flash flooding, accounting for the vast majority of recorded flood events over the last 30 years alongside standard river floods and rare tropical storms.
Recent events illustrate this risk, such as the February 2025 cold Pacific storm and atmospheric river combination. This event brought 3-day precipitation totals of 4 to 7 inches to the San Bernardino Mountains, 1-hour mountain rainfall rates of 0.5 to 0.9 inches per hour, and a total rainfall of 6 inches on February 13, producing significant debris flows and flash flooding.
Homeowners across multiple zones should pay close attention to their specific designations, as claims and water depths are distributed across diverse areas. Properties in high-risk Zone A have recorded 382 claims with an average water depth of 12 inches and an average payout of $18,891. Meanwhile, properties in Zone X have recorded 190 claims with an average water depth of 10 inches and an average payout of $27,171, and Zone D properties have recorded 54 claims with an average water depth of 8 inches and an average payout of $21,672.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
34% of San Bernardino County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
582 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 9 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 1980, with 110 claims and $741,763 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Mudslides & 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.
198 NOAA storm reports from San Bernardino County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the California flood stories →
61 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 14 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Bridge Fire | Sep 10, 2024 |
| Line Fire | Sep 7, 2024 |
| 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, And Mudslides | Jan 8, 2023 |
| Blue Ridge Fire | Oct 26, 2020 |
| El Dorado Fire | Sep 5, 2020 |
| Wildfires | Sep 4, 2020 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
1,000 since 1996: 835 flash floods and 162 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Sep 27, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 27, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 27, 2025 | $50,000 |
| Flood | Sep 27, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 27, 2025 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2025 | $1,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 26, 2025 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Sep 27, 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 severe weather and flash flooding.
Flood · Sep 27, 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 severe weather and 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 severe weather and flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Aug 26, 2025. Southeasterly flow advected in monsoon moisture, fueling scattered thunderstorms, some of which produced flash flooding and severe winds.
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 San Bernardino 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.