7 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 Washington 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 risk profile in Washington County, accounting for the vast majority of recorded flood events over the last 30 years with 24 flash flood events compared to 5 general flood events.
Recent history demonstrates the destructive impact of these severe weather patterns. On June 21, 2023, a long-duration severe weather event brought scores of tornadoes and heavy precipitation across Washington and Logan counties. Earlier, on June 15, 2015, a levee breach along the South Platte River inundated farmland across northeast Morgan and northwest Washington counties, resulting in the washout of Union Pacific railroad tracks that forced a multi-day closure for repairs.
Properties situated near rivers and agricultural areas along floodplains should pay the most attention to this localized flood hazard, particularly during heavy summer thunderstorm and severe weather periods.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
8 NOAA storm reports from Washington County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Colorado flood stories →
13 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes | Jun 8, 2023 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | May 4, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Sep 11, 2013 |
| Snow | Dec 18, 2006 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Wildfires | Apr 23, 2002 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Apr 11, 2001 |
| Heavy Rains, Snowmelt And Flooding | May 23, 1973 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
29 since 1996: 24 flash floods and 5 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Jun 21, 2023 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jun 21, 2023 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 27, 2022 | $5,000 |
| Flood | Jun 15, 2015 | $5.0M |
| Flash Flood | Jun 11, 2015 | $15,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 29, 2014 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 22, 2014 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jul 19, 2013 | $10,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Jun 21, 2023. Long duration severe weather event across the northeast plains, and most of the Denver metropolitan area beginning during the early afternoon hours. Scores of tornadoes occurred across Washington and Logan counties. Several rounds of hail across the Denver metro, with ping pong ball sized hail in downtown, larger hail up to 2 inches in diameter at concert in Red Rocks Amphitheatre. In all, seven patrons were…
Flash Flood · Jun 21, 2023. Long duration severe weather event across the northeast plains, and most of the Denver metropolitan area beginning during the early afternoon hours. Scores of tornadoes occurred across Washington and Logan counties. Several rounds of hail across the Denver metro, with ping pong ball sized hail in downtown, larger hail up to 2 inches in diameter at concert in Red Rocks Amphitheatre. In all, seven patrons were…
Flash Flood · Jul 27, 2022. Severe thunderstorms produced damaging wind and hail, along with torrential rainfall across the I-25 Corridor and Northeast Plains. Areas hardest hit included: eastern Boulder, Douglas, eastern Larimer, Washington and Weld counties. Hail up to tennis ball size (2.5 inches), was observed near Black Hollow Reservoir east of Fort Collins. Elsewhere the hail ranged from quarter to golfball size. The hail damaged…
Flood · Jun 15, 2015. A levee breach along the South Platte River inundated farmland across northeast Morgan and northwest Washington Counties. The breach also washed out a Union Pacific railroad tracks with forced the closure of the railroad for several days until repair could be completed.
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 Washington 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.