18 flood insurance claims·$292,350 paid·6 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 Box Elder County, Utah. 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.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 26 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 1986, with 7 claims and $242,681 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.
1 NOAA storm reports from Box Elder County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Utah flood stories →
9 federal disaster declarations since 1977, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Winter Storms And Flooding | Feb 7, 2017 |
| Flooding | Apr 18, 2011 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Flooding And Landslides | Apr 28, 2005 |
| Severe Storms, Mudslides, Landslides & Flooding | Aug 17, 1984 |
| Severe Storms, Landslides & Flooding | Apr 13, 1983 |
| Drought | Jan 20, 1977 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
6 since 1996: 2 flash floods and 4 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Mar 15, 2023 | $30,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 3, 2023 | $1.0M |
| Flood | Aug 3, 2023 | $1.0M |
| Flood | Feb 7, 2017 | $5.0M |
| Flood | May 16, 1996 | $40,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Mar 15, 2023. Another winter storm brought gusty winds and accumulating snow to much of Utah in the middle of March. Precipitation combined with snowmelt also resulted in flooding, mostly in southern Utah, including noted fatalities in a popular slot canyon.
Flash Flood · Aug 3, 2023. A deep monsoonal event impacted Utah at the beginning of August. Each of these days across northern Utah, widespread thunderstorms and flooding impacted the region. Very heavy rainfall impacted West Valley City, Honeyville, and Draper in particular.
Flood · Aug 3, 2023. A deep monsoonal event impacted Utah at the beginning of August. Each of these days across northern Utah, widespread thunderstorms and flooding impacted the region. Very heavy rainfall impacted West Valley City, Honeyville, and Draper in particular.
Flood · Feb 7, 2017. Heavy rainfall and significant snowmelt through the month of February combined to produce flooding in multiple locations across far northern Utah.
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 Box Elder 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.