States › Washington › Whatcom County

Whatcom County, Washington

Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.

FIPS 53073 · 228,831 residents (2021) · 2,108 sq mi · dominant hazard Other

Hail · 0Tornado · 1Flood · 5Wind · 3Winter · 0

Whatcom County within Washington. Dots: TornadoFloodWind event locations in the kept record. Boundaries: US Census Bureau.

NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 1 Oct 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

Between 1950 and 2026, NCEI recorded 20 storm events in Whatcom County, Washington, led by other events.

That is 0.9 events per 100 square miles, below the Washington figure of 15.1, and 0.9 per 10,000 residents against 12.9 statewide.

0 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 1 death and 2 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $50M.

FEMA has designated the county in 27 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides (major disaster, 7 Apr 2026).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 1,211 claims since 1978, of which 1,023 were paid, totalling $53M (about $52K per paid claim). FEMA counts 1,497 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Relatively Moderate" and its expected annual loss as "Relatively Moderate" ($111M a year across 18 hazards).

0events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

20events since 19501 death, 2 injuries recorded

27disaster declarationslast 7 Apr 2026

1,211NFIP flood claims$53M paid

Compared with Washington and the United States

Measure	Whatcom County	Washington	US
Recorded events since 1950	20	10,014	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	0.9	15.1	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	0.9	12.9	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	0	130	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	1	321	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$50M	$4.6B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	5.3	2.1	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$52K	$29K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	46.2	10.7	16.1

County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.

Events by decade

Lightning: 1Other: 1

Tornado: 1Flood: 2Wind: 1Tropical: 2Other: 2

Flood: 1Wind: 2Other: 1

Flood: 2Other: 4

01950s01960s01970s01980s21990s82000s42010s62020s

Recorded events in Whatcom County by decade and hazard group. TornadoFloodWindTropicalLightningOther NCEI recorded only tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind before 1996.

Trend: 13 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 7 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.

Events by type

Other8

Flood5

Wind3

Tropical2

Tornado1

Lightning1

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Other	8	—	1.1%
■ Flood	5	1	0.6%
■ Wind	3	—	0.1%
■ Tropical	2	—	13.3%
■ Tornado	1	—	0.7%
■ Lightning	1	—	0.9%

Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.

Largest recorded events

Date	Event type	Group	Magnitude	Property damage	Crop damage	Deaths	Injuries	Geography
14 Nov 2021	Flood	Flood	—	$34M	—	1	—	County
15 Dec 2000	Storm Surge/Tide	Tropical	—	$650K	—	—	1	County
15 Nov 2021	Heavy Rain	Other	—	$75K	—	—	1	County
28 Nov 2021	Flood	Flood	—	$8.5M	—	—	—	County
7 Jan 2009	Flood	Flood	—	$5.6M	—	—	—	County
16 Dec 2001	Storm Surge/Tide	Tropical	—	$250K	—	—	—	County
4 Nov 2006	Flood	Flood	—	$250K	—	—	—	County
20 Oct 2003	Heavy Rain	Other	—	$100K	—	—	—	County
12 Dec 2010	Flood	Flood	—	$100K	—	—	—	County

Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.

Federal disaster declarations

Declared	Number	Type	Incident	Title	Programs
7 Apr 2026	DR-4906	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides	Individual assistance, Public assistance
12 Dec 2025	EM-3629	Emergency	Flood	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides	Public assistance
5 Jan 2022	DR-4635	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides	Individual assistance, Public assistance
23 Apr 2020	DR-4539	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides	Public assistance
22 Mar 2020	DR-4481	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3427	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
4 Mar 2019	DR-4418	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides, Tornado	Public assistance
21 Apr 2017	DR-4309	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides	Public assistance
20 Oct 2015	DR-4243	Major disaster	Fire	Wildfires And Mudslides	Public assistance
15 Oct 2015	DR-4242	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Windstorm	Public assistance
24 Aug 2015	FM-5109	Fire management assistance	Fire	Goodell Fire	Public assistance
2 Mar 2009	DR-1825	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm And Record And Near Record Snow	Public assistance
30 Jan 2009	DR-1817	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, Mudslides, And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
7 Sep 2005	EM-3227	Emergency	Coastal Storm	Hurricane Katrina Evacuation	Public assistance
7 Nov 2003	DR-1499	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
1 Mar 2001	DR-1361	Major disaster	Earthquake	Earthquake	Individual assistance, Public assistance
17 Jan 1997	DR-1159	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storms, Land & Muds Slides,Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
3 Jan 1996	DR-1079	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, High Wind, And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
2 Aug 1994	DR-1037	Major disaster	Fishing Losses	The El Nino (The Salmon Industry)	Individual assistance
8 Mar 1991	DR-896	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & High Tides	Public assistance
26 Nov 1990	DR-883	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
27 Jan 1983	DR-676	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms, High Tides & Flooding	Public assistance
21 May 1980	DR-623	Major disaster	Volcanic Eruption	Volcanic Eruption, Mt. St. Helens	Individual assistance, Public assistance
31 Dec 1979	DR-612	Major disaster	Flood	Storms, High Tides, Mudslides & Flooding	Individual assistance
10 Dec 1977	DR-545	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms,Mudslides, & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Dec 1975	DR-492	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
9 Feb 1971	DR-300	Major disaster	Flood	Heavy Rains, Melting Snows & Flooding	Public assistance

Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.

Flood insurance claims

197820022026

NFIP claims by year of loss in Whatcom County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 19781,211

Paid claims1,023

Total paid$53M

Average paid claim$52K

Repetitive-loss properties18216 severe

Residential policies in force1,4971.9% of 79,381 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2026	3	1	$14,405	$14,405
2025	297	273	$21,610,356	$79,159
2024	4	4	$556,376	$139,094
2023	1	0	$0	—
2022	28	24	$925,420	$38,559
2021	329	298	$22,545,522	$75,656
2020	26	20	$394,805	$19,740
2018	2	1	$43,627	$43,627
2017	1	0	$0	—
2016	6	3	$25,456	$8,485
2015	4	3	$7,051	$2,350
2014	1	0	$0	—
2012	14	11	$190,412	$17,310
2011	1	0	$0	—
2010	12	6	$112,265	$18,711
2009	56	43	$1,631,923	$37,952
2008	4	2	$1,326	$663
2007	2	1	$5,665	$5,665
2006	39	39	$720,033	$18,462
2005	1	1	$2,742	$2,742
2004	9	9	$317,277	$35,253
2003	26	18	$121,304	$6,739
2002	3	2	$18,889	$9,444
2001	15	14	$210,206	$15,015
2000	10	8	$224,297	$28,037

OpenFEMA NFIP claims (v3, as of 8 Sep 2026), aggregated by year of loss; amounts are building, contents and increased-cost-of-compliance payments as recorded. Repetitive-loss counts from the NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (2 Aug 2026); policies in force from the NFIP Residential Penetration Rates file (3 Aug 2026).

National Risk Index

Overall riskRelatively Moderatescore 91.0 of 100

Expected annual loss$111MRelatively Moderate

Social vulnerabilityRelatively Low

Community resilienceRelatively High

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Earthquake	Relatively Moderate	$50,921,626
Inland flooding	Relatively Moderate	$40,443,002
Avalanche	Very High	$6,920,420
Cold wave	Relatively Moderate	$6,108,233
Ice storm	Very High	$2,733,261
Heat wave	Relatively Moderate	$1,656,275
Coastal flooding	Relatively Moderate	$793,739
Landslide	Relatively Moderate	$559,209
Lightning	Relatively Moderate	$420,573
Winter weather	Relatively Moderate	$275,833
Tsunami	Very Low	$255,013
Volcanic activity	Relatively Moderate	$127,658
Tornado	Very Low	$126,673
Wildfire	Very Low	$109,559
Strong wind	Very Low	$12,133
Hail	Very Low	$3,226
Drought	Very Low	$503

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.

Hurricane and tropical storm passes

No HURDAT2 track at tropical-storm strength passes within 100 miles of the county's centre point (through the 2025 season).

ZIP codes with flood claims

98295 348
98247 294
98248 166
98226 72
98276 70
98264 49
98230 45
98244 29
98220 26
98281 25
98225 24
98229 24
98262 7

ZIP codes whose NFIP claims carry this county's code, with the number of claims. Five or more claims are needed for a ZIP page to be indexed.

Questions and answers

How often does it hail in Whatcom County, WA?

NCEI records no hail events in Whatcom County since 1950. Reports depend on someone observing and reporting the hail, so absence of a record is not proof of absence.

Has Whatcom County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 1 tornado in Whatcom County since 1950, 0 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 0.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Whatcom County?

7 Apr 2026: Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, And Mudslides, a major disaster declaration for flood. The county appears in 27 declarations since 1953.

How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Whatcom County, and how much was paid?

1,211 NFIP claims since 1978, 1,023 of them paid, for $53M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Whatcom County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?

FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Relatively Moderate" for overall risk, "Relatively Moderate" for expected annual loss, "Relatively Low" for social vulnerability and "Relatively High" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Whatcom County compare with the rest of Washington?

0.9 recorded events per 100 square miles against 15.1 statewide, and 5.3 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 2.1. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.

Provenance

Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 1 Oct 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 1 Oct 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.