Harris County flood history
Texas · From FEMA's flood insurance and disaster data · Updated 2026-10-08
FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) data lists 170,854 flood insurance claims in Harris County, Texas since 1978. The NFIP paid $8.8 billion on them (building, contents and Increased Cost of Compliance payments, in the dollars of the year paid).
The year with the most claims was 2017, with 49,788, mostly from Hurricane Harvey.
In the last ten years (2017–2026) there were 58,004 claims, and the average paid claim was $116,566.
55% of the claims with a recorded flood zone came from buildings outside FEMA's high-risk zones (rated zones B, C and X).
About 16.6% of homes in Harris County, Texas had an NFIP flood policy in FEMA's latest count (206,279 of 1,245,880 residential buildings). In the high-risk flood zones (Special Flood Hazard Areas), it was 48% (54,764 of 113,215).
Since 2000, FEMA has made 8 flood-related disaster declarations covering Harris County, Texas. The most recent was DR-4781-TX (Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding), declared May 17, 2024.
NFIP claims by year
Show as a table
| Year | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 81 | $1.6 million |
| 2025 | 63 | $866,648 |
| 2024 | 1,745 | $54.1 million |
| 2023 | 187 | $2.7 million |
| 2022 | 187 | $2.6 million |
| 2021 | 573 | $3.7 million |
| 2020 | 348 | $6.5 million |
| 2019 | 4,773 | $223.0 million |
| 2018 | 259 | $3.1 million |
| 2017 | 49,788 | $5.4 billion |
| 2016 | 8,157 | $446.0 million |
| 2015 | 7,002 | $396.9 million |
| 2014 | 340 | $3.2 million |
| 2013 | 451 | $6.4 million |
| 2012 | 944 | $17.8 million |
| 2011 | 62 | $87,159 |
| 2010 | 358 | $2.4 million |
| 2009 | 4,824 | $140.6 million |
| 2008 | 13,716 | $424.8 million |
| 2007 | 1,425 | $31.2 million |
| 2006 | 2,466 | $56.4 million |
| 2005 | 386 | $2.8 million |
| 2004 | 330 | $2.2 million |
| 2003 | 1,650 | $33.7 million |
| 2002 | 3,198 | $75.8 million |
| 2001 | 22,946 | $873.7 million |
| 2000 | 277 | $1.7 million |
| 1999 | 591 | $4.6 million |
| 1998 | 3,936 | $78.8 million |
| 1997 | 1,624 | $17.1 million |
| 1996 | 285 | $4.9 million |
| 1995 | 328 | $1.3 million |
| 1994 | 3,561 | $98.7 million |
| 1993 | 445 | $4.2 million |
| 1992 | 2,907 | $52.3 million |
| 1991 | 412 | $2.0 million |
| 1990 | 79 | $254,481 |
| 1989 | 6,487 | $83.6 million |
| 1988 | 65 | $103,199 |
| 1987 | 564 | $3.1 million |
| 1986 | 235 | $852,051 |
| 1985 | 711 | $3.4 million |
| 1984 | 1,153 | $16.0 million |
| 1983 | 6,762 | $89.2 million |
| 1982 | 428 | $1.5 million |
| 1981 | 4,765 | $29.9 million |
| 1980 | 660 | $1.6 million |
| 1979 | 8,140 | $71.5 million |
| 1978 | 180 | $448,221 |
Named flood events
| Event | Year | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Harvey | 2017 | 48,992 | $5.4 billion |
| Tropical Storm Allison | 2001 | 22,394 | $871.0 million |
| Spring severe storms | 2016 | 7,289 | $426.1 million |
| Hurricane Ike | 2008 | 13,360 | $418.9 million |
| Early summer storms | 2015 | 5,748 | $370.3 million |
| Tropical Storm Imelda | 2019 | 4,038 | $194.2 million |
| Spring Storm | 2009 | 3,366 | $121.9 million |
| Flooding | 1994 | 3,313 | $96.5 million |
How many homes have flood insurance
FEMA counts 206,279 residential NFIP policies in Harris County, against 1,245,880 residential buildings (16.6%). Of the 113,215 residential buildings in high-risk flood zones (Special Flood Hazard Areas), 54,764 have an NFIP policy (48%). Private flood policies aren't in these counts.
Whether you're required to carry flood insurance depends on your flood zone and your mortgage. See do I need flood insurance?
Flood-related disaster declarations
| Declaration | Declared | Event | Help for individuals |
|---|---|---|---|
| DR-4781-TX | May 17, 2024 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4466-TX | Oct 4, 2019 | Tropical Storm Imelda | Yes |
| DR-4272-TX | Jun 11, 2016 | Severe Storms and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4269-TX | Apr 25, 2016 | Severe Storms and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4245-TX | Nov 25, 2015 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4223-TX | May 29, 2015 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-1791-TX | Sep 13, 2008 | Hurricane Ike | Yes |
| DR-1439-TX | Nov 5, 2002 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding | Yes |
Check your own address
County numbers can't tell you about a single building. Look up your property on FEMA's flood map, then read what your flood zone means. More counties: all of Texas.
Where these numbers come from
All figures on this page are calculated from FEMA's public OpenFEMA datasets:
- NFIP Redacted Claims (v3) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): NFIP claims since 1978, downloaded 2026-10-08. Dollar amounts are what the NFIP paid, not adjusted for inflation. Claims filed under private flood insurance aren't included.
- NFIP Residential Penetration Rates (v1) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): NFIP residential policy contracts in force (as of August 3, 2026) divided by FEMA's count of residential buildings from the National Structure Inventory. FEMA notes that inventory is incomplete in some counties, which can inflate the rate. Private flood policies aren't counted.
- Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): disaster declarations, downloaded 2026-10-08. We count a declaration as flood-related when FEMA lists flooding (or a dam or levee break) as its incident type or a designated incident type, or the declaration's title mentions flooding.
FEMA's redacted claims data doesn't identify properties, and FEMA notes that some records lack a county or flood zone. See how we use the data.