9,609 flood insurance claims·$167.8M paid·9 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 New Haven County, Connecticut. 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 heavy summer thunderstorms and rainfall systems dominates the flood character of New Haven County. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 133 flash flood events, resulting in 3 deaths, alongside 35 general flood, 24 coastal flood, and 6 tropical storm events. Recent events illustrate this severe rainfall threat, including July 2025, when 4 to 6.5 inches of rain fell from a weak front, and August 2024, when back-building thunderstorms produced hourly rainfall rates of 3 to 4.5 inches and triggered a Flash Flood Emergency.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data demonstrate that property damage extends across multiple zones. High-risk coastal and riverine areas experience heavy impacts, led by Zone A with 5,575 claims averaging $24,555 and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches, and Zone V with 1,610 claims averaging $26,561 and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches. Moderate-to-low risk zones also report significant losses, including Zone X with 644 claims averaging $19,867 and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches, Zone X_Shaded with 554 claims averaging $13,039 and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches, and Zone X_Unshaded with 842 claims averaging $10,713 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches.
Coastal properties, homes situated in high-risk Zones A and V, and properties located in shaded or unshaded Zone X areas should pay the closest attention to flood preparedness given the substantial history of claims and intense rainfall events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
16% of New Haven County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
8,581 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 6 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 2011, with 1,861 claims and $53.8M paid, the year of Hurricane Irene and Severe Storm.
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.
73 NOAA storm reports from New Haven County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Connecticut flood stories →
36 federal disaster declarations since 1978, 9 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hawthorne Fire | Oct 21, 2024 |
| Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Aug 18, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Aug 18, 2024 |
| Remnants Of Hurricane Ida | Sep 1, 2021 |
| Hurricane Henri | Aug 21, 2021 |
| Tropical Storm Isaias | Aug 4, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | May 15, 2018 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 26, 2015 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
199 since 1996: 133 flash floods, 35 river or area floods and 25 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 14, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 13, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 22, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2024 | — · 2 killed |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2024 | $200,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2024 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2024 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2024 | $20,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 14, 2025. A weak front approached from the west along with PW of 2 inches resulting in heavy rainfall across the area. 4 to 6.5 inches of rainfall totals were reported with rainfall rates between 1 to 2 inches.
Flash Flood · Aug 13, 2025. Thunderstorms moved across New Haven County, CT producing 1 inch of rainfall an hour. A total of 4 to 5 inches fell across New Haven.
Flash Flood · Jun 22, 2024. A stationary front was draped across the area on June 22nd under a warm and moist airmass. PWAT values near 1.8 to 2 inches along with MUCAPE values of 1000 to 1500 J/kg allowed for the development of thunderstorms with heavy rainfall on the order of 1-2 per hour rates. Rainfall totals in southern Connecticut were anywhere from 1- 2 inches.
Flash Flood · Aug 18, 2024. A frontal system over the area on August 18th allowed for the development of rain early in the morning. As the day progressed, mesoscale features including multiple boundary interactions and a mesolow allowed thunderstorms to continue to intensify with persistent back-building and training over the same areas in southern Connecticut. These thunderstorms produced anywhere from 3-4.5 inch per hour rainfall rates res…
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 New Haven 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.