406 flood insurance claims·$1.7M paid·4 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 Salt Lake 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.
Flash flooding from summer thunderstorms dominates the flood profile of Salt Lake County, UT, accounting for 29 events compared to 14 standard flood events over the last 30 years. Recent impacts include a deep monsoonal event that brought heavy rainfall and widespread flooding to West Valley City, Honeyville, and Draper on August 2-3, 2023, as well as heavy multi-day rainfall producing 2 to 4 inches of rain and flash flooding on October 4, 2025.
National Flood Insurance Program records show claims distributed across multiple zones, led by Zone UNKNOWN with 250 claims averaging a $6,532 payout and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches, and Zone X with 94 claims averaging a $10,268 payout and an average recorded water depth of 37 inches. Zone A accounts for 48 claims with an average payout of $11,171 and an average water depth of 5 inches, while Zone X_UNSHADED recorded 12 claims averaging $11,198 with a 2-inch average water depth, and Zone X_SHADED recorded 2 claims averaging $90 with a 1-inch average water depth.
Properties in Zone X, Zone A, and unmapped areas should pay the most attention to flood risk, given the history of claims and significant average water depths recorded during past events.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
23% of Salt Lake County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
62 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 8 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 1982, with 112 claims and $307,208 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.
8 NOAA storm reports from Salt Lake County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Utah flood stories →
12 federal disaster declarations since 1983, 4 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Parleys Canyon Fire | Aug 14, 2021 |
| Straight-line Winds | Sep 7, 2020 |
| Earthquake And Aftershocks | Mar 18, 2020 |
| Rose Crest Fire | Jun 29, 2012 |
| Flooding | Apr 18, 2011 |
| Machine Gun Fire | Sep 19, 2010 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Tornado, Severe Thunderstorms, And Hail | Aug 11, 1999 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
43 since 1996: 29 flash floods and 14 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Oct 4, 2025 | $500,000 |
| Flash Flood | Sep 4, 2023 | $15,000 |
| Flood | Sep 4, 2023 | $15,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 3, 2023 | $16.0M |
| Flash Flood | Aug 3, 2023 | $1.0M |
| Flash Flood | Aug 3, 2023 | $50,000 |
| Flash Flood | Aug 2, 2023 | $100,000 |
| Flood | Aug 2, 2023 | $150,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Oct 4, 2025. Heavy rain over a several day period caused flash flooding for much of the Tooele Valley. Rainfall totals through the event ranged from 2-4 inches.
Flash Flood · Sep 4, 2023. An active pattern resulted in strong wind gusts in addition to isolated flash flooding to start the month of September.
Flood · Sep 4, 2023. An active pattern resulted in strong wind gusts in addition to isolated flash flooding to start the month of September.
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.
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 Salt Lake 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.