Enter any address in Wayne County, New York to see its FEMA flood zone
Flash flooding from thunderstorms is the most frequent flood event in Wayne County, NY, with 28 occurrences recorded in the last 30 years. Recent examples include flash flooding on June 18th, 2025, caused by heavy rain from thunderstorms along a lake breeze boundary, and August 9th, 2024, when the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Debby brought heavy rainfall to the region.
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) has processed 120 claims in Zone A, averaging $12,775 per payout with an average water depth of 0.9 feet. Zone X_UNSHADED saw 26 claims with an average payout of $7,590 and 0.7 feet of water. Homeowners in Zone A and Zone X_UNSHADED, as well as those in areas prone to flash flooding or without a Base Flood Elevation (BFE), should pay the most attention to flood risk.
Summary generated from NOAA storm narratives and NFIP claim data for this county. Not predictive.
41 NOAA storm reports from this county describe what happened, in the words of the meteorologists who were there.
Wayne County, New York has recorded 48 flood-related events since 1996 according to NOAA's Storm Events Database, including 28 flash floods and 10 river or area floods. The county has received 17 federal disaster declarations, 3 of which involved flooding or coastal storms. Enter any address above to check its FEMA flood zone designation.
FEMA Disaster Declarations (1972–2020)
Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries.
| Declaration | Type | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Covid-19 | Biological | Jan 20, 2020 |
| Covid-19 Pandemic | Biological | Jan 20, 2020 |
| Flooding | Flood | May 2, 2017 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Hurricane | Oct 27, 2012 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Hurricane | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Severe Storm | Aug 13, 2004 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Severe Storm | May 13, 2004 |
| Power Outage | Other | Aug 14, 2003 |
| Ice Storm | Severe Ice Storm | Apr 3, 2003 |
| Fires And Explosions | Fire | Sep 11, 2001 |
NOAA Storm Events Database (1996–2025)
Source: NOAA National Weather Service Storm Events Database.
| Type | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jun 18, 2025 | 0.00K |
| Flash Flood | Sep 9, 2024 | 0.00K |
| Flash Flood | Aug 9, 2024 | 0.00K |
| Flood | Jun 12, 2023 | 0.00K |
| Lakeshore Flood | Nov 27, 2019 | — |
| Lakeshore Flood | Nov 21, 2019 | 0.00K |
| Lakeshore Flood | May 20, 2019 | 1000.00K |
| Flood | May 17, 2019 | 3000.00K |
| Flood | Jun 1, 2019 | 1500.00K |
| Flood | Jul 1, 2019 | 1000.00K |
Flash Flood — Jun 18, 2025
Showers and thunderstorms developed along a Lake Erie lake breeze boundary during the late morning of June 18th. With the very high moisture laden airmass over the area, heavy rain occurred within some of the showers and thunderstorms that developed. Some of the thunderstorms, especially early, trained over the same area long enough to cause flash flooding issues. Additional showers and thunder...
Flash Flood — Sep 9, 2024
A potent shortwave trough/Mesoscale Convective Vortex tracked southeast across the area, causing showers and thunderstorms for much of the Buffalo forecast area. A few of the thunderstorms became severe with tornado and wind damage, along with rain that was heavy enough to cause Flash Flooding issues.
Flash Flood — Aug 9, 2024
The remnants of Tropical Cyclone Debby tracked northeast across Central New York on Friday August 9. As the system tracked across the region, heavy rain pushed into parts of the forecast area, with the heaviest rain falling over the Southern Tier, Finger Lakes and up to the North Central New York areas. Flash Flooding was the primary threat from the remnants of the system, but some strong to se...
Flood — Jun 12, 2023
A cold front with a feed of rich moisture resulted in widespread moderate to heavy rain and a few instances of mainly road flooding from late in the afternoon on the 12th through early evening hours of the 12th. The heaviest rain and flooding reports received were centered across the Finger Lakes. No lightning was observed with the heavy rain. Some of the heaviest rain reports included; 2.95 in...
Lakeshore Flood — Nov 27, 2019
Strong low pressure moved from the central Great Lakes to north of Lake Ontario. The trailing cold front entered western New York early in the afternoon of 11/27 and swept through later that evening. While the track of the surface low was very favorable, the event was atypical in that the surface low reached its maximum intensity across the western Great Lakes and filled quite rapidly by the ti...
Source: NOAA National Weather Service Storm Events Database.
Source: OpenFEMA NFIP Individual Claims (2.25M records analyzed).
FEMA assigns flood zone designations to areas in Wayne County, New York:
AE High Risk — 1% annual chance of flooding. Insurance required.
VE Very High Risk — Coastal flooding with wave action.
X (Shaded) Moderate Risk — 500-year floodplain.
X Low Risk — Outside major floodplains.
Properties in Wayne County, New York that are in FEMA-designated Special Flood Hazard Areas (zones A and V) with federally backed mortgages are required to carry flood insurance.
Even outside high-risk zones, flood insurance is recommended. From 2014 to 2024, nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area.
Visit FloodSmart.gov to find an agent and get a quote.