346 flood insurance claims·$2.7M 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 Lubbock 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 summer thunderstorms dominates the flood risk in Lubbock County, supported by 49 recorded flash flood events compared to 29 general flood events over the last 30 years. Recent NOAA records show that severe weather systems bring significant threats, such as the intense supercell thunderstorm on June 5, 2025, which produced tornadoes, wind, and hail across western and southwestern portions of the City of Lubbock, and the heavy rainfall system on May 6, 2025, which caused flash flooding that inundated and rendered several area roadways impassable.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood risks extend beyond designated high-risk areas. While Zone A accounts for the highest claim volume with 263 claims averaging $14,056 and an average recorded water depth of 4 inches, properties in Zone X also experience significant impacts, recording 37 claims with an average payout of $14,835 and an average water depth of 12 inches. Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 23 claims averaging $2,595 with an average 3-inch depth, Zone UNKNOWN recorded 14 claims averaging $2,936 with an average 2-inch depth, and Zone X_SHADED recorded 9 claims averaging $3,046 with an average 2-inch depth. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties in Zone A and Zone X, where historical claims and water depths indicate the highest frequency and severity of financial losses.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
11% of Lubbock County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
295 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 4 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 1999, with 43 claims and $272,170 paid.
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.
50 NOAA storm reports from Lubbock County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1970, 2 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Dec 26, 2015 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds And Flooding | May 4, 2015 |
| Hurricane Alex | Jun 30, 2010 |
| Hurricane Ike | Sep 7, 2008 |
| Hurricane Gustav | Aug 27, 2008 |
| Wildfires | Mar 14, 2008 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
78 since 1996: 49 flash floods and 29 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Aug 17, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 6, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 5, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 31, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 18, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jun 9, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | Nov 2, 2024 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 28, 2023 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Aug 17, 2025. Isolated to widely scattered thunderstorms developed on the afternoon of the 17th with convective temperatures breached by mid-afternoon. Although the environment was not favorable for severe storms with warm mid-level temperatures, a relatively dry sub-cloud layer allowed a few of these storms to produce severe wind gusts. The most notable storm occurred over the city of Lubbock where a peak wind gust of 77 mph w…
Flash Flood · May 6, 2025. An upper level storm system approached the region on the fifth into the morning hours of the sixth bringing widespread heavy rainfall and thunderstorms to the region. At the same time, a cold front moved through the area with significant moist ascent above the frontal zone. Most of the rainfall occurred within only a two hours period early in the morning on the sixth but was enough to cause flash flooding around t…
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 · May 31, 2024. Another day of severe thunderstorms affected the South Plains of West Texas on the evening of the 31st. Broad southeasterly low level atmospheric flow allowed thunderstorms to initially develop in eastern New Mexico. Upscale growth allowed thunderstorms to move into West Texas despite a capped atmosphere over the South Plains. This line of thunderstorms produced widespread severe wind gusts from Hockley County thr…
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 Lubbock 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.