15 flood insurance claims·$131,533 paid·2 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 Hockley 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 from severe thunderstorms and heavy rainfall systems dominates the flood profile of Hockley County, accounting for 29 out of 46 recorded flood events over the last thirty years, alongside 17 general flood events. Severe weather patterns frequently drive these incidents, such as an intense supercell thunderstorm in June 2025 and a widespread moderate-to-heavy rain event fueled by Gulf moisture in November 2024. Additional significant flash flood episodes occurred in June 2023 due to storms originating from the southern Rockies and Desert Southwest, and in April 2025 driven by increasing low-level atmospheric moisture, a dryline, and a cold front.
NFIP claims data shows historical payouts across multiple zones. Zone A recorded 10 claims with an average payout of $13,988 and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches. Zone X unshaded recorded 4 claims with an average payout of $9,735 and an average recorded water depth of 8 inches, while an unknown zone recorded 1 claim with an average payout of $32,389 and an average recorded water depth of 3 inches.
Homeowners and real estate agents in Zone A and unshaded Zone X areas should pay the closest attention to these risks, given the documented insurance claims and average water depths associated with past storms.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
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 2015, with 3 claims and $49,216 paid, the year of Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding.
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.
22 NOAA storm reports from Hockley County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
16 federal disaster declarations since 1970, 2 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 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Wildfires | Apr 6, 2011 |
| Wildfires | Mar 14, 2008 |
| Extreme Wildfire Threat | Nov 27, 2005 |
| Hurricane Rita | Sep 23, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
46 since 1996: 29 flash floods and 17 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Apr 25, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 5, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 18, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 30, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jun 2, 2023 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 23, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 21, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 30, 2021 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Apr 25, 2025. Low level atmospheric moisture continued to increase for another consecutive day across the South Plains and Rolling Plains of West Texas on the afternoon of the 25th. Numerous outflow boundaries, a dryline, and a cold front provided a focus for thunderstorm initiation during the afternoon hours. Three rounds of severe storms affected the Texas South Plains region from the afternoon of the 25th to the early mornin…
Flash Flood · Jun 5, 2025. During the afternoon and evening hours of the fifth, an intense supercell thunderstorm moved over the South Plains region of West Texas, producing several tornadoes over portions of Cochran, Hockley, and Lubbock Counties. This thunderstorm also produced widespread damage from very strong straight-line winds and large hail across western and southwestern portions of the City of Lubbock (Lubbock County) before it ex…
Flash Flood · Nov 18, 2024. Widespread moderate to heavy rain fell on much of the South Plains and Rolling Plains region from late on the 17th through the early morning hours of the 18th. An intense mid level storm system in combination with abundant moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and Pacific brought this heavy rainfall. This storm system initially strengthened over southern California and the northern Gulf of California, where strong jet…
Flash Flood · Jun 30, 2023. A storm system approached the region from the southern Rockies and Desert Southwest. In addition, rich Gulf of Mexico moisture spread northward into the South Plains. As lift from the disturbance reached the moisture, scattered thunderstorms developed across the southwest Texas Panhandle and western South Plains on the afternoon of the 30th. The thunderstorms grew upscale into clusters and eventually a line of sto…
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 Hockley 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.