2 flood insurance claims·$5,442 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 Saguache 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 2 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.
3 NOAA storm reports from Saguache County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Colorado flood stories →
9 federal disaster declarations since 1970, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | May 4, 2015 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Snow | Mar 17, 2003 |
| Wildfires | Apr 23, 2002 |
| Severe Storms, Mudslides, Landslides & Flooding | Jul 27, 1984 |
| Drought | Jan 29, 1977 |
| Heavy Rains & Flooding | Sep 22, 1970 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
10 since 1996: 6 flash floods and 4 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 1, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 24, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 2, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 5, 2007 | — |
| Flood | Apr 30, 1999 | $2.0M |
| Flood | Apr 30, 1999 | $8.6M |
| Flash Flood | Jul 25, 1999 | $65,000 |
| Flood | May 1, 1999 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 1, 2022. Heavy rain fell over portions of north-central Saguache County producing flooding and closing down CO Hwy 114 for several hours.
Flash Flood · Jul 24, 2021. Increases in moisture and instability on this day supported thunderstorm development over and near the mountains, and also around the I-25 and Highway 50 corridors. Stronger development did occur across Pueblo county, where heavy rainfall with flash flooding and damaging winds were observed.
Flash Flood · Aug 2, 2021. Slow moving thunderstorms developed over the mountains, as the monsoon plume remained in place on this day. With the heavy rain that stemmed from these thunderstorms along with high antecedent soil moistures from rainfall over the past several days, the flash flood threat remained high with a few reports of flash flooding noted near the higher terrain.
Flash Flood · Jul 5, 2007. Heavy thunderstorm rains produced flash flooding around Buena Vista in Chaffee County and west of Saguache in Saguache County.
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 Saguache 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.