3,184 flood insurance claims·$42.9M paid·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 Barnstable County, Massachusetts. 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.
General flood and coastal flood events dominate the hazard profile of Barnstable County, backed by 36 standard flood events and 33 coastal flood events recorded over the last 30 years by the NOAA Storm Events Database, alongside tropical storms, flash floods, and storm surges.
Recent conditions illustrate these recurrent coastal impacts. A strong Nor'easter in April 2024 brought heavy rainfall and minor to moderate coastal flooding along the east coast of Massachusetts. Earlier that year, low-pressure systems in January 2024 produced strong southeast winds, rain, and widespread coastal flooding affecting both the south and east coasts of the region.
Property owners in high-risk zones should pay the closest attention to these flood dynamics. National Flood Insurance Program records show the heaviest claim volumes concentrated in coastal and high-risk areas, led by Zone A with 1,764 claims averaging an 18,064 dollar payout and an average recorded water depth of 6 inches, and Zone V with 712 claims averaging a 25,410 dollar payout and an average recorded water depth of 7 inches. Moderate and minimal hazard zones also experience claims, including Zone X with an average recorded water depth of 8 inches, shaded Zone X with an average depth of 6 inches, and unshaded Zone X with an average depth of 4 inches.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
14% of Barnstable County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
2,894 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 1991, with 1,362 claims and $19.9M paid, the year of Hurricane Bob and Coastal 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.
61 NOAA storm reports from Barnstable County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Massachusetts flood stories →
28 federal disaster declarations since 1972, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Hurricane Lee | Sep 15, 2023 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 28, 2022 |
| Tropical Storm Henri | Aug 20, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Flooding | Mar 2, 2018 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding | Jan 26, 2015 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding | Feb 8, 2013 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 27, 2012 |
| Tropical Storm Irene | Aug 27, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
113 since 1996: 18 flash floods, 36 river or area floods and 39 coastal floods or surges.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Coastal Flood | Jan 13, 2024 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Jan 10, 2024 | — |
| Coastal Flood | Apr 4, 2024 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 16, 2023 | $500 |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 16, 2023 | $3,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 16, 2023 | $1,000 |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 16, 2023 | $800 |
| Tropical Storm | Sep 16, 2023 | $1,500 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Coastal Flood · Jan 13, 2024. A low pressure system over the southern Plains strengthened significantly as it reached the eastern Great Lakes. This placed New England on the warm side of the storm with strong SE winds and rain instead of snow. This lead to widespread river flooding and coastal flooding on both the south and east coasts of southern New England. The heaviest rain fell over eastern CT, RI, and eastern MA with totals of 1 to 3 inc…
Coastal Flood · Jan 10, 2024. A negatively tilted mid level trough swung through New England while at the surface a low pressure center passed directly over southern New England. This inland runner brought warm air so that all precipitation fell as rain, along with strong winds. There was a good deal of tree damage from the winds and widespread river flooding with many rivers going into major flood stage. Coastal flooding was also a problem. M…
Coastal Flood · Apr 4, 2024. A strong Nor'easter passed offshore of southern New England bringing widespread heavy rainfall, high elevation snow and sleet, as well as strong winds to the region. There was minor flooding on some rivers as well as minor to moderate coastal flooding along the east coast of MA. This was a late season snow storm with very elevation dependent snowfall totals from 0 to over 8 inches. Wind damage was sporadic and mos…
Tropical Storm · Sep 16, 2023. Hurricane Lee passed east of Southern New England during the morning hours moving toward maritime Canada by midday. As it passed by it produced some tropical storm level sustained winds and wind gusts but impact was minimal. There were some downed trees and power lines and the maximum wind gust was 62 mph on the bay side of Cape Cod.
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 Barnstable 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.