320 flood insurance claims·$2.8M paid·10 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 Yakima County, Washington. 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.
Riverine flooding dominates Yakima County, supported by 40 traditional flood events compared to 14 flash flood events recorded over the last 30 years by the NOAA Storm Events Database. Flood hazards in the region are driven by seasonal weather patterns, such as heavy rain falling on existing snowpack with rising snow levels, which caused moderate flooding and landslides along the East Slopes of the Washington Cascades in February 2020. Additionally, increased snow melt caused minor flooding along portions of the Naches River in Yakima County in May 2017.
National Flood Insurance Program records indicate that flood impacts extend across multiple zones, with the highest claim volume concentrated in Zone A at 196 claims with an average payout of $13,291 and an average recorded water depth of 7 inches. Properties in Zone X recorded 30 claims with an average payout of $18,433 and an average water depth of 2 inches, while Zone X unshaded areas recorded 18 claims with an average payout of $10,506 and an average water depth of 6 inches. Zone X shaded areas recorded 14 claims with an average payout of $3,516 and an average water depth of 12 inches, and unknown zones recorded 61 claims with an average payout of $6,254 and an average water depth of 2 inches. Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the most attention to properties located within Zone A and river-adjacent areas subject to snowmelt and heavy rainfall hazards.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
14% of Yakima County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
228 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 1996, with 107 claims and $895,179 paid, the year of High Winds, Severe Storms and Flooding and Severe Winter Storms, Land & Muds Slides,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.
6 NOAA storm reports from Yakima County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the Washington flood stories →
35 federal disaster declarations since 1964, 10 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides | Dec 9, 2025 |
| Retreat Fire | Jul 25, 2024 |
| West White Swan Fire | Jul 22, 2024 |
| Slide Ranch Fire | Jun 22, 2024 |
| Schneider Springs Fire | Aug 19, 2021 |
| Evans Canyon Fire | Sep 1, 2020 |
| Wildfires And Straight-line Winds | Sep 1, 2020 |
| North Brownstown Fire | Aug 16, 2020 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
54 since 1996: 14 flash floods and 40 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Feb 7, 2020 | — |
| Flood | May 30, 2017 | — |
| Flood | Mar 16, 2017 | — |
| Flood | Mar 14, 2017 | — |
| Flood | Mar 10, 2017 | $20,000 |
| Flood | Feb 10, 2017 | — |
| Flood | May 5, 2017 | — |
| Flood | Mar 6, 2016 | — |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Feb 7, 2020. Heavy snow on February 4-5, 2020 was followed by a period of heavy rain, February 5-7. Snow levels rose to near 5000 feet. The heavy rain and snow melt lead to moderate flooding and several landslides along the East Slopes of the Washington Cascades. There was record flooding on several rivers, including the Umatilla, Walla Walla and Touchet rivers with widespread flooding of numerous other creeks and streams…
Flood · May 30, 2017. Increased snow melt caused minor flooding on portions of the Naches river in Yakima county.
Flood · Mar 16, 2017. Snow melt, combined with periods rain, resulted in numerous streams flooding across south-central Washington.
Flood · Mar 14, 2017. Snow melt, combined with periods rain, resulted in numerous streams flooding across south-central Washington.
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 Yakima 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.