40 flood insurance claims·$156,037 paid·3 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 Bonner County, Idaho. 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.
Riverine flooding driven by heavy rain and spring snowmelt dominates Bonner County, with the NOAA Storm Events Database recording 27 standard flood events compared to a single flash flood over the last 30 years. Historical events illustrate this pattern, such as the December 2025 atmospheric river that brought 2 to 4 inches of rain, combined with snowmelt to cause flooding and landslides. Similarly, an accelerated snowpack melt in May 2018 prompted the Albeni Falls Dam to open its floodgates, raising the Pend Oreille River to moderate flood levels through the first week of June.
Federal insurance records show claims spanning multiple zones, indicating risk outside strictly defined high-risk areas. Zone A accounts for 16 claims with an average payout of $5,535 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches. Zone X accounts for 12 claims with an average payout of $4,483 and an average water depth of 6 inches, while unshaded Zone X records 7 claims with an average payout of $11,972 and an average water depth of 10 inches. Properties in Zone A, along rivers, and in unshaded Zone X areas where average water depths and payouts are notably higher should pay the most attention to flood risk.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
33% of Bonner County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
24 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 9 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 1997, with 12 claims and $67,830 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Snowmelt, Land/mud Slides, Flooding.
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.
18 NOAA storm reports from Bonner County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Idaho flood stories →
16 federal disaster declarations since 1967, 3 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Sunset Fire | Aug 14, 2025 |
| Straight-line Winds | Jan 13, 2021 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 6, 2017 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Dec 16, 2015 |
| Severe Storm And Straight-line Wind | Nov 17, 2015 |
| Cape Horn Fire | Jul 5, 2015 |
| Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Mar 31, 2011 |
| Hurricane Katrina | Aug 29, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
28 since 1996: 1 flash floods and 27 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Dec 10, 2025 | $20,000 |
| Flood | Dec 6, 2023 | $1,000 |
| Flood | May 22, 2020 | $10,000 |
| Flood | May 20, 2020 | — |
| Flood | May 18, 2018 | $2,500 |
| Flood | May 11, 2018 | $5,000 |
| Flood | Mar 15, 2017 | $2.0M |
| Flood | Dec 9, 2015 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Dec 10, 2025. An atmospheric river brought heavy rains to the Central Idaho Panhandle December 10 and 11. Areas saw 48 hour rain amounts of 2 to 4 inches. The rain combined with snow melt and led to several flooding and landslide incidents. An embedded cold front brought high winds up to 60 mph to the region causing downed trees and power lines.
Flood · Dec 6, 2023. Snowmelt and rain amounts near 2.5 inches led to washout of Forest Service road near Hope, Idaho.
Flood · May 22, 2020. On May 20th, a cool and showery pattern began in the northern Idaho Panhandle. Two upper low pressure systems dropped down into the region out of the northwest. These brought rain, with some brief heavy rain, from May 20th through May 22nd. Many creeks in northern Idaho, such as Bonner County, were at dangerous levels this May due to heavy rain and significant spring snow melt. On May 20th, numerous rain gauges me…
Flood · May 20, 2020. On May 20th, a cool and showery pattern began in the northern Idaho Panhandle. Two upper low pressure systems dropped down into the region out of the northwest. These brought rain, with some brief heavy rain, from May 20th through May 22nd. Many creeks in northern Idaho, such as Bonner County, were at dangerous levels this May due to heavy rain and significant spring snow melt. On May 20th, numerous rain gauges me…
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 Bonner 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.