94 flood insurance claims·$1.8M paid·5 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 Umatilla 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.
River flooding and standard floods dominate Umatilla County, accounting for 14 events and 1 death over the last 30 years alongside 8 flash flood events. Flood hazards are frequently driven by heavy rain combined with mountain snowmelt, as occurred during record flooding in February 2020 along the Umatilla, Walla Walla, and Touchet rivers. High snow water equivalents paired with warm temperatures and heavy rainfall also produced significant river flooding in April 2019, while late May 2022 brought heavy rain and localized washouts from upper low pressure systems.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims across multiple zones, with the highest concentration occurring in FEMA Zone A, which accounts for 58 claims averaging $32,820 with an average recorded water depth of 3 inches. Zone X properties have also experienced losses, recording 17 claims averaging $32,232 with an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within Zone A and Zone X, where repetitive claims and structural water damage have been documented.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
13% of Umatilla County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
67 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 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 2020, with 35 claims and $1.3M 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.
5 NOAA storm reports from Umatilla County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Oregon flood stories →
13 federal disaster declarations since 1964, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Battle Mountain Fire Complex | Jul 21, 2024 |
| Wildfires | Jul 10, 2024 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Feb 5, 2020 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Apr 6, 2019 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Dec 26, 2003 |
| Or Bridge Creek Fires 2375 | Aug 15, 2001 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Land And Mudslides, Flooding | Dec 25, 1996 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
22 since 1996: 8 flash floods and 14 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | May 28, 2022 | — |
| Flood | May 20, 2020 | — |
| Flood | Feb 6, 2020 | $39.7M · 1 killed |
| Flood | Apr 10, 2019 | $5.0M |
| Flood | Apr 9, 2019 | $10,000 |
| Flood | Apr 9, 2019 | $9.0M |
| Flood | Feb 4, 2018 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 26, 2017 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · May 28, 2022. Several upper low pressure systems moving across northeast OR in late May produced several rounds of heavy rain in the Blue Mountains and along the foothill locations. Several reports of water over local roadways, washouts of gravel roads, and heavy rain were reported during the day on May 29th.
Flood · May 20, 2020. Heavy rain with QPF amounts of 2-4 inches across the Blue Mountains, Blue Mountain Foothills, and John Day Highlands produced areal and river flooding on May 20th and ending on May 21st. Most of the flooding was minor.
Flood · Feb 6, 2020. Summary : Heavy snow on February 4-5, 2020 was followed by a period of heavy rain, February 5-7. Snow levels rose to near 5000 feet. The heavy rain and snow melt lead to moderate flooding and several landslides along the East Slopes of the Washington Cascades. There was record flooding on several rivers, including the Umatilla, Walla Walla and Touchet rivers with widespread flooding of numerous other creeks and…
Flood · Apr 10, 2019. Snow water equivalents near 200% of normal in the Blue Mountains coupled with warm temperatures and near record rainfall totals for April produced significant river flooding across eastern Oregon.
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 Umatilla 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.