70 flood insurance claims·$661,330 paid·4 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 Douglas 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.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Douglas County, accounting for 41 out of 46 recorded flood events over the last 30 years. Slow-moving storms frequently drop heavy rainfall across the area, as occurred during a slow-moving storm system in May 2023 that produced heavy rainfall across the urban corridor and Palmer Divide, and during severe storms in June 2024 that brought heavy rainfall and hail to the east and southeast parts of the Denver Metro area.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that risk extends beyond traditionally mapped high-risk areas. The highest number of claims occurred in Zone X with 50 claims averaging a recorded water depth of 28 inches and an average payout of $9,967, followed by Zone D with 9 claims averaging 9 inches of recorded water depth and an average payout of $42,255. Zone A recorded 6 claims with an average water depth of 22 inches and an average payout of $7,296.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in Zone X and Zone D, which account for the majority of historical flood insurance claims in the county.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 18 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 11 claims and $7,145 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.
6 NOAA storm reports from Douglas County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Colorado flood stories →
13 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Jun 8, 2023 |
| Snow | Dec 18, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Co - Cherokee Ranch Wildfire - 10/29/2003 | Oct 29, 2003 |
| Snow | Mar 17, 2003 |
| Co - Schoonover Fire - 05/23/02 | May 21, 2002 |
| Wildfires | Apr 23, 2002 |
| Drought | Jan 29, 1977 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
46 since 1996: 41 flash floods and 5 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 9, 2024 | $20,000 |
| Flood | May 12, 2023 | $25,000 |
| Flood | Jun 14, 2015 | $15,000 |
| Flood | Jun 12, 2015 | $15,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 11, 2015 | $15,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 12, 2014 | $15,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 22, 2013 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 14, 2013 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jun 9, 2024. Slow moving thunderstorms produced hail and heavy rainfall as they slowly drift south across the east/southeast part of the Denver Metro area. Additional storms track across Colorado producing hail up to 1 inch in Fairplay and Platteville. Plowable hail occurred under the Fairplay storm.
Flood · May 12, 2023. A slow moving storm system produced flooding and flash flooding across the urban corridor and northeast plains, with heavy snowfall in the higher mountains of the Front Range. Storm total rainfall during the 3-day event ranged from 4 to 7 inches across the urban corridor and Palmer Divide, with 2 to 5 inches across the plains. Additionally, from 1 to 2 feet of heavy wet snow occurred above 10 thousand feet. The…
Flood · Jun 14, 2015. Severe thunderstorms produced large hail up to golfball size. The combination of heavy rain and snowmelt also produced a prolonged period of flooding over southern Jefferson and southwestern Douglas County.
Flood · Jun 12, 2015. Thunderstorms producing heavy rainfall caused flooding and flash flooding across parts of the Urban Corridor and adjacent plains.
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 Douglas 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.