219 flood insurance claims·$6.4M paid·8 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 Gonzales County, Texas. 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.
Flash flooding driven by heavy rainfall dominates the flood character of Gonzales County, accounting for 90 out of 106 flood events recorded over the last 30 years alongside 15 general floods and 1 tropical storm.
Recent weather patterns are exemplified by events in January 2024, when a nearly stationary upper-level trough over the western United States and a stationary boundary across central Texas combined with anomalously moist air to produce several rounds of locally heavy rain over a three-day period.
Property owners in Zone A should pay the most attention, as this zone accounts for the vast majority of historical National Flood Insurance Program claims with 163 filings averaging $32,065 in payouts and an average recorded water depth of 15 inches. Residents in shaded and unshaded Zone X areas must also remain aware of flood potential, where fewer claims occurred but average water depths reached up to 50 inches and 12 inches respectively, with payouts averaging between $20,961 and $50,763.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
18% of Gonzales County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
198 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 22 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 1998, with 80 claims and $3.4M paid, the year of Tropical Storm Charley and Flooding 10/18/98.
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.
32 NOAA storm reports from Gonzales County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
22 federal disaster declarations since 1967, 8 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Apr 26, 2024 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Hurricane Harvey | Aug 23, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds And Flooding | May 4, 2015 |
| Wildfires | Apr 6, 2011 |
| Wildfires | Mar 14, 2008 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 16, 2007 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
106 since 1996: 90 flash floods and 15 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jan 24, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 23, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 22, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 13, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | Oct 14, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 27, 2017 | — |
| Tropical Storm | Aug 26, 2017 | $100,000 |
| Flash Flood | Apr 18, 2016 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jan 24, 2024. An upper-level trough remained nearly stationary over the western US resulting in southwesterly flow over Texas. A stationary boundary stretched across central Texas with anomalously moist air south of the boundary. A series of shortwave troughs moved through the upper pattern generating several rounds of locally heavy rain over three days. There was also some large hail.
Flash Flood · Jan 23, 2024. An upper-level trough remained nearly stationary over the western US resulting in southwesterly flow over Texas. A stationary boundary stretched across central Texas with anomalously moist air south of the boundary. A series of shortwave troughs moved through the upper pattern generating several rounds of locally heavy rain over three days. There was also some large hail.
Flash Flood · Jan 22, 2024. An upper-level trough remained nearly stationary over the western US resulting in southwesterly flow over Texas. A stationary boundary stretched across central Texas with anomalously moist air south of the boundary. A series of shortwave troughs moved through the upper pattern generating several rounds of locally heavy rain over three days. There was also some large hail.
Flash Flood · May 13, 2023. An upper level trough moved over a moist, unstable airmass and generated thunderstorms. Storms initially formed over the higher terrain in Mexico and moved across the Rio Grande into Texas. Some storms produced damaging wind gusts. Storms eventually congealed into a slow-moving line that produce locally heavy rain leading to flash flooding.
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 Gonzales 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.