9,463 flood insurance claims·$199.5M 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 Morris County, New Jersey. 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 flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominate the flood history of Morris County, New Jersey. NOAA records over the last 30 years show 85 flood events resulting in 2 deaths, 63 flash flood events, and 3 tropical storm events. Recent occurrences include heavy rain from a coastal low causing river flooding across the Passaic and Raritan basins in January 2024, alongside multiple flash flood events triggered by stationary and cold fronts in July 2025.
Federal Emergency Management Agency records show the vast majority of National Flood Insurance Program claims are concentrated in Zone A, which accounts for 8,040 claims with an average payout of $26,094 and an average recorded water depth of 14 inches. Lower claim volumes exist outside designated high-risk areas, including 395 claims in Zone X_UNSHADED with an average payout of $21,654 and an average recorded water depth of 8 inches, 254 claims in Zone X averaging $23,017 with 7 inches of water, and 210 claims in Zone X_SHADED averaging $19,154 with 9 inches of water.
Property owners located in Zone A and near river basins should pay the closest attention to flood risks, as these areas experience the highest frequency of claims and deepest average water depths during severe weather.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
7% of Morris County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
8,647 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 13 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 2,971 claims and $119.5M 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.
30 NOAA storm reports from Morris County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the New Jersey flood stories →
33 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 9 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Remnants Of Hurricane Ida | Sep 1, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 31, 2021 |
| Tropical Storm Isaias | Aug 4, 2020 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Mar 6, 2018 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm | Jan 22, 2016 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 26, 2012 |
| Severe Storm | Oct 29, 2011 |
| Hurricane Irene | Aug 27, 2011 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
151 since 1996: 63 flash floods and 85 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jul 31, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 14, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 14, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 18, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Jan 10, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Jan 1, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Dec 28, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 26, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jul 31, 2025. A stationary front sparked off showers and thunderstorms across the forecast area. Flash flooding resulted.
Flash Flood · May 14, 2025. Scattered thunderstorms producing heavy rain developed across the area on the afternoon of May 14.
Flash Flood · Jul 14, 2025. An approaching cold front sparked off showers and thunderstorms across the forecast area. Flash flooding resulted.
Flash Flood · Aug 18, 2024. Waves of showers and thunderstorms ahead of a cold front produced widespread showers and thunderstorms. A few storms produced damaging wind gusts, knocking down trees and power lines across portions of New Jersey.
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 Morris 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.