20 flood insurance claims·$178,936 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 Broomfield County, Colorado. 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.
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 2015, with 3 claims and $18,332 paid.
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.
1 NOAA storm reports from Broomfield County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Colorado flood stories →
6 federal disaster declarations since 2003, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Sep 11, 2013 |
| Snow | Dec 18, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Snow | Mar 17, 2003 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
3 since 1996: 2 flash floods and 1 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 16, 2022 | $10,000 |
| Flood | Sep 12, 2013 | — |
| Flash Flood | Sep 12, 2013 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 16, 2022. Heavy rainfall produced extensive flooding in Broomfield. Six inches of water inundated a section of Highway 287. Bike paths were flooded along Rock Creek and near Spader Way near the Broomfield Events Center. Spader Way was closed due to flash flooding from 1st Avenue to DesCombes Drive. Storm totals up to 3.62 inches observed in the area. Bike paths flooded with several feet of water along Coal Creek in Lafaye…
Flood · Sep 12, 2013. A deep southerly flow over Colorado, ahead of a near stationary low pressure system over the Great Basin, pumped copious amounts of monsoonal moisture into the area. In addition, a weak stationary front stretched along the Front Range Foothills and Palmer Divide. As a result, a prolonged period of moderate to heavy rain developed across the Front Range Foothills, Palmer Divide, Urban Corridor. By the 14th, stor…
Flash Flood · Sep 12, 2013. A deep southerly flow over Colorado, ahead of a near stationary low pressure system over the Great Basin, pumped copious amounts of monsoonal moisture into the area. In addition, a weak stationary front stretched along the Front Range Foothills and Palmer Divide. As a result, a prolonged period of moderate to heavy rain developed across the Front Range Foothills, Palmer Divide, Urban Corridor. By the 14th, stor…
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 Broomfield 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.