50 flood insurance claims·$69,070 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 Blaine County, Montana. 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.
River flooding and localized flash flooding from slow-moving summer thunderstorms dominate the flood history of Blaine County. Over a thirty-year period, NOAA recorded 17 general flood events and 5 flash flood events. Recent activity includes a July 2025 flash flood caused by anomalously high moisture and slow-moving thunderstorms that dropped 1.72 inches of rain in about 45 minutes at the Havre airport, resulting in localized flooding in Havre and Clear Creek. Additionally, unseasonably warm temperatures in April 2023 melted a deep snowpack over frozen ground, generating significant runoff that caused moderate to major flooding along portions of the Milk River and its tributaries.
NFIP historical claims data shows impacts across multiple zones, with the highest number of claims recorded in zones with unknown designations. Homeowners and real estate agents representing properties near the Milk River, its tributaries, and low-lying areas prone to severe summer convective storms should pay the most attention to these flood risks. Properties categorized under Zone UNKNOWN accounted for 33 claims with an average payout of $1,484 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches, while Zone A properties recorded 12 claims with an average payout of $2,837 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches. Zone X properties recorded 4 claims with an average payout of $3,157 and an average recorded water depth of 1 inch.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 3 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 1978, with 29 claims and $34,114 paid.
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.
8 NOAA storm reports from Blaine County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Montana flood stories →
12 federal disaster declarations since 1986, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm And Flooding | May 6, 2024 |
| Flooding | Apr 10, 2023 |
| Flooding | Apr 12, 2018 |
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Aug 21, 2014 |
| Flooding | May 19, 2013 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Apr 4, 2011 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Wildfires | Jul 13, 2000 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
22 since 1996: 5 flash floods and 17 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 27, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Sep 18, 2024 | — |
| Flood | May 7, 2024 | $1.1M |
| Flood | Apr 10, 2023 | $1.0M |
| Flood | Apr 8, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Apr 7, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jun 3, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jun 22, 2019 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 27, 2025. A persistent troughing pattern brought in good instability and shear to produce severe thunderstorms across the region over the 3 day time frame with strong winds as the primary hazard. There was also isolated large hail. Anomalously high moisture content and slower moving storms brought localized flooding. A thunderstorm produced heavy rainfall and caused flooding in Havre and in Clear Creek on the 27th. The Havr…
Flood · Sep 18, 2024. A closed upper low over the Great Basin and vicinity shifted northeastward toward the region while it spawned a surface low across eastern MT. As the upper level disturbance and surface low became stacked across eastern MT, a period of widespread heavy rain developed where the TROWAL set up across the eastern plains. Additionally, a few strong northwesterly gusts were observed on the west side of the surface low.…
Flood · May 7, 2024. A closed upper level low lifted northeast across eastern Montana on May 6th through the 9th. This low merged with a shortwave streaming from the Pacific Northwest. This storm system brought strong winds across Central and North Central Montana with the highest wind gust measured near Whitlash where a mesonet station measured an 87 mph gust. Widespread wind gusts of 55 and 75 mph were measured. Most damage was limi…
Flood · Apr 10, 2023. Unseasonably warm temperatures occurred in the first two weeks of April, with highs near 80 degrees occurring at times. These warm temps, along with occasional rain, resulted in melting of a deep snowpack on top of frozen ground which led to significant runoff into area waterways. Moderate to major flooding occurred along portions of the Milk River and its tributaries. Impactful snowmelt flooding also occurred acr…
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 Blaine 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.