160 flood insurance claims·$2.0M paid·6 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 Clatsop County, Oregon. 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.
20% of Clatsop County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
129 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 15 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 2007, with 33 claims and $584,449 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides.
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.
2 NOAA storm reports from Clatsop County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Oregon flood stories →
18 federal disaster declarations since 1964, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Dec 6, 2015 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Flooding, Mudslides, Landslides, And Debris Flows | Jan 13, 2011 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Record And Near Record Snow | Dec 13, 2008 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Dec 1, 2007 |
| Severe Winter Storm And Flooding | Dec 14, 2006 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Nov 5, 2006 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Dec 18, 2005 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
7 since 1996: 7 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Dec 5, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jan 6, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Jan 3, 2021 | — |
| Flood | Jan 16, 2011 | — |
| Flood | Jan 8, 2009 | — |
| Flood | Jan 7, 2009 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Dec 5, 2023. A strong atmospheric river brought heavy rains on December 5th which pushed many streams and rivers to flood stage along the coast, with minor flooding on many smaller streams and creeks across northwest Oregon. After moderate rainfall December 1st through the 4th, a very slow moving front dumped more heavy rain to the northern Oregon coast and coast range mountains. Area of the Coast Range received 12 to 16 inche…
Flood · Jan 6, 2022. The second in a series of strong Pacific fronts brought another round of heavy rain and resulting flooding of mainstem rivers draining the coastal mountains and interior of northwest Oregon. Coastal flooding also occurred at some coastal communities as a result of high astronomical tides combined with high river levels and high seas.
Flood · Jan 3, 2021. A strong westerly upper level jet over the northern Pacific was directed at the Washington and Oregon coast, driving a plume of deep moisture toward western Washington and northwest Oregon.
Flood · Jan 16, 2011. A series of weather disturbances over the weekend brought sub-tropical moisture to the Pacific Northwest producing heavy rainfall over the region. The heavy rainfall combined with snowmelt runoff led to flooding on several rivers and streams in Northwest Oregon as well as landslides and debris flows.
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 Clatsop 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.