130 flood insurance claims·$6.7M 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 Uvalde 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 rain dominates the flood history of Uvalde County. Over the last 30 years, the NOAA Storm Events Database recorded 138 flash flood events resulting in 2 deaths, alongside 28 general flood events resulting in 2 additional deaths. Recent occurrences include heavy rain and flash flooding driven by thunderstorms in April 2025 and a mesoscale convective vortex from northern Mexico in July 2025.
Federal insurance claims data indicates that high-risk areas bear the brunt of property damage. Properties located in FEMA Flood Zone A account for the vast majority of claims with 101 filed, averaging a payout of $67,309 and an average recorded water depth of 23 inches. Zone X properties recorded 18 claims with an average payout of $54,261 and an average recorded water depth of 12 inches, while properties with unknown zones recorded 11 claims with an average payout of $7,360 and an average water depth of 2 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties situated within designated high-risk flood zones, particularly Zone A, where historical claims demonstrate deeper standing water and significantly higher financial losses during severe weather events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
Less than 1% of Uvalde County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
101 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 20 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 2002, with 54 claims and $2.4M paid, the year of Severe Storms 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.
39 NOAA storm reports from Uvalde County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Texas flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1989, 5 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Jul 2, 2025 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Winter Storms | Feb 11, 2021 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Sep 10, 2018 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds And Flooding | May 4, 2015 |
| Wildfires | Mar 14, 2008 |
| Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding | Jun 16, 2007 |
| Extreme Wildfire Threat | Nov 27, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
166 since 1996: 138 flash floods and 28 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | Apr 23, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Jul 15, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 15, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 14, 2025 | — |
| Flood | Sep 7, 2025 | — |
| Flash Flood | Aug 31, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 15, 2021 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 1, 2021 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flash Flood · Apr 23, 2025. A small cluster of thunderstorms developed in deep southerly flow and a warm, moist airmass behind a warm front. There were steep mid-level lapse rates in this airmass, and these storms produced large hail.
Flood · Jul 15, 2025. A mesoscale convective vortex developed over northern Mexico and sent an outflow boundary into South-Central Texas. Thunderstorms in this complex produced locally heavy rain that led to flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Jul 15, 2025. A mesoscale convective vortex developed over northern Mexico and sent an outflow boundary into South-Central Texas. Thunderstorms in this complex produced locally heavy rain that led to flash flooding.
Flash Flood · Jul 14, 2025. A mesoscale convective vortex developed along the Rio Grande and moved northeastward across South-Central Texas. Thunderstorms from this complex produced locally heavy rain that led 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 Uvalde 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.