3,569 flood insurance claims·$61.5M 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 Tarrant 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 thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Tarrant County, accounting for 276 recorded events and 15 deaths over the last 30 years, compared to 27 general flood events and 3 deaths. Severe weather patterns drive this risk, as demonstrated by events on May 5–6, 2025, when a sharp upper trough and meandering surface front generated two rounds of thunderstorms, hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes. Slow-moving fronts and training thunderstorms also caused widespread flash flooding on April 30, 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data indicates that flood risks extend beyond high-risk areas. Zone A accounts for the highest claim volume with 1,891 claims averaging a $26,362 payout and an average recorded water depth of 5 inches. However, properties in moderate-to-low risk areas also face substantial risk; Zone X recorded 1,030 claims with an average payout of $25,510 and an average water depth of 9 inches. Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 388 claims with an average payout of $11,314 and an average water depth of 3 inches, while Zone X_SHADED logged 98 claims averaging an $11,820 payout and an average water depth of 5 inches. Properties with unknown zone designations logged 161 claims averaging an $8,925 payout and an average water depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located within designated Zone A high-risk flood areas, as well as those in Zone X where claims data shows substantial average water depths and payout amounts during severe storm events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
20% of Tarrant County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
2,378 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 5 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 1989, with 433 claims and $6.6M paid, the year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes & 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.
84 NOAA storm reports from Tarrant County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
28 federal disaster declarations since 1966, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Tropical Storms Marco And Laura | Aug 23, 2020 |
| Hurricane Harvey | Aug 23, 2017 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds And Flooding | May 4, 2015 |
| 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.
303 since 1996: 276 flash floods and 27 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Jan 30, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Apr 30, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jan 29, 2025 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Jan 29, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Oct 24, 2025 | $10,000 |
| Flash Flood | Oct 24, 2025 | $2,000 |
| Flash Flood | Oct 24, 2025 | $5,000 |
| Flash Flood | Nov 24, 2025 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Jan 30, 2025. A slow moving upper low generated multiple rounds of rain, some heavy, the night of January 29 into the morning of January 30 across North Texas. Much of the heavy rain and associated flooding occurred in and near the DFW Metroplex.
Flash Flood · Apr 30, 2025. A slow moving front and an upper trough generated scattered thunderstorms on April 29, and widespread showers and thunderstorms on April 30, across much of North and Central Texas. Some of these storms became severe with large hail and damaging winds, but the most impactful weather was flash flooding due to the slow movement of the front and the resulting ���training��� of thunderstorms along and near…
Flash Flood · Jan 29, 2025. A slow moving upper low generated multiple rounds of rain, some heavy, the night of January 29 into the morning of January 30 across North Texas. Much of the heavy rain and associated flooding occurred in and near the DFW Metroplex.
Flash Flood · Oct 24, 2025. An upper-level low brought two main rounds of thunderstorms to North and Central Texas during the last week of October 2025. The first, and most severe, was a large storm complex on the evening of October 24, followed by isolated activity on the afternoon of October 25. Severe weather primarily consisted of thunderstorm wind damage and isolated instances of 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 Tarrant 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.