Connecticut floods
Every recorded flood since 1996 · 8 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 1,033 floods and flash floods in Connecticut from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 33 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the August 18, 2024 flash flood in New Haven County: 3 deaths and $94,000 in damage in 2025 dollars across 2 records. Connecticut ranks 41st of 52 states and territories by count and 7th of 51 per square mile.
Floods in Connecticut, 1996 to 2026
Flood records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 1,0331996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 33average
- Deaths
- 134 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $73Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 2023109 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are floods and flash floods common in Connecticut?
Connecticut averages about 33 floods and flash floods a year since 2000, 41st of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2023 (109). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Connecticut records 2133 floods and flash floods since 1996, 7th of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
When is flood season in Connecticut?
Connecticut's floods and flash floods by month. The busiest month is September (202 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 83 · Feb 14 · Mar 93 · Apr 57 · May 18 · Jun 73 · Jul 170 · Aug 172 · Sep 202 · Oct 85 · Nov 7 · Dec 59 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest floods and flash floods in Connecticut?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-08-18 | Flash FloodOxford, New Haven County One storm episode: 2 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. A frontal system over the area on August 18th allowed for the development of rain early in the morning. As the day progressed, mesoscale features including multiple boundary interactions and a mesolow allowed thunderstorms to continue to intensify with persistent back-building and training over the same areas in ... | 3 | 0 | $94K | |
| 2005-10-15 | FloodWindham County · forecast zone Windham One storm episode: 5 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. A low pressure system interacted with a plume of tropical moisture as the low slowly moved parallel to the Long Island and south Massachusetts coasts, resulting in excessive rain and flooding across north central and northeast Connecticut. Between approximately 4 and 8.5 inches of rain fell across the region. The ... | 2 | 0 | $8.8M | |
| 2011-08-28 | Tropical Storm Irene · FloodBristol, Hartford County Four to ten inches of heavy rain from Tropical Storm Irene resulted in the Pequabuck River overflowing its banks. This led to flooding on roads and homes along the river throughout Bristol. Flooded roads ran approximately three and a half feet deep. A 46 year old man went canoeing in floodwaters. He drowned when his ... | 1 | 0 | $10M | |
| 2021-09-02 | Hurricane Ida · FloodHotchkissville, Litchfield County One named storm filed by several offices: 3 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. The remnants of Tropical Cyclone Ida resulted in several reports of flash flooding over during the early morning hours of September 2. Rainfall from the evening of the 1st through the early morning hours of the 2nd totaled three to six inches. Several roads were closed as a result of the flooding, and one fatality ... | 1 | 0 | $6.3M | |
| 1999-09-16 | Hurricane Floyd · Flash FloodCountywide, New Haven County One named storm filed by several offices: 3 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. Torrential record rainfall, which caused serious widespread urban, small stream, and river flooding, preceded the remnants of Hurricane Floyd, which passed over Western Suffolk County of Long Island around 8 pm and across Central Connecticut from 9 pm to 11 pm on the 16th.Death: A 34-year old man drowned around 6 pm ... | 1 | 0 | $4.3M | |
| 2010-03-14 | FloodLaysville, New London County One storm episode: 2 records; the totals are the episode's. A Nor'easter developed off the Delmarva peninsula which produced an extended period of heavy rainfall across the area as it tracked very slowly to the northeast. This caused widespread flooding across portions of New London County. | 1 | 0 | $271K | |
| 2008-09-06 | Flash FloodWinnipauk, Fairfield County A homeless man was swept down the Norwalk River from his home under the Cross Street Bridge. His body was found at 8:15 am Sunday morning off of Chimon Island, just outside Norwalk Harbor. The medical examiner determined the death was consistent with drowning with a boat propeller injury occurring after death. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 1997-03-31 | Coastal FloodFairfield County · forecast zone Southern Fairfield An intense low pressure system developed off the DELMARVA Coast during Monday morning. It moved slowly east-northeast, passing south of Long Island Monday afternoon and southeast of Cape Cod, MA during Tuesday morning, April 1st.Heavy rain developed by late Monday morning. As winds increased, it became wind-swept. ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2006-04-23 | FloodCountywide, New Haven County As a low pressure system over the Great Lakes moved slowly east during Saturday, April 22nd, another low developed over Southeast Virginia and moved slowly north toward the region on Sunday. Synoptic scale ascent over a cool moist layer of air caused by high pressure northeast of New England, caused heavy rain, which ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 1996-12-07 | Coastal FloodNew Haven County · forecast zone Southern New Haven A second coastal storm formed in less than 24 hours off the Mid-Atlantic Coast. As it moved northeast off the coast, it spread heavy precipitation across the local area.The precipitation began around 6 pm on December 7th in the form of rain along the coast, but was mixed with snow further inland. Heavy rain was ... | 1 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest floods and flash floods in Connecticut
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-03-30 | FloodClarks Falls, New London County One storm episode: 8 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 1 | $14M | |
| 2011-08-28 | Tropical Storm Irene · FloodBristol, Hartford County | 1 | 0 | $10M | |
| 2000-08-11 | Flash FloodBridgeport, Fairfield County | 0 | 0 | $10M | |
| 2005-10-15 | FloodWindham County · forecast zone Windham One storm episode: 5 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 2 | 0 | $8.8M | |
| 2021-09-02 | Hurricane Ida · FloodHotchkissville, Litchfield County One named storm filed by several offices: 3 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 1 | 0 | $6.3M | |
| 1999-09-16 | Hurricane Floyd · Flash FloodCountywide, New Haven County One named storm filed by several offices: 3 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 1 | 0 | $4.3M | |
| 2007-10-11 | Flash FloodShippan Pt, Fairfield County | 0 | 0 | $2.8M | |
| 1996-04-16 | Flash FloodCountywide, New Haven County | 0 | 0 | $2.8M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are floods and flash floods becoming more frequent in Connecticut?
Connecticut's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Connecticut | United States | Connecticut's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 167 | 20,986 | 0.80% |
| 2000s | 279 | 54,913 | 0.51% |
| 2010s | 306 | 68,322 | 0.45% |
| 2020-26 | 281 | 43,563 | 0.65% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent floods and flash floods in Connecticut
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-10-30 | FloodDanbury, Fairfield County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-08-13 | Flash FloodMiddlebury, New Haven County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-07-14 | Flash FloodWaterbury, New Haven County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-07-14 | Flash FloodCanton, Hartford County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-07-08 | Flash FloodDarien, Fairfield County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2024-08-18 | Flash FloodOxford, New Haven County | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2024-08-18 | Flash FloodLyons, Fairfield County | 1 | 0 | $94K | |
| 2023-07-09 | FloodSouth Norfolk, Litchfield County | 0 | 0 | $484K | |
| 2023-07-09 | Flash FloodSouth Norfolk, Litchfield County | 0 | 0 | $969K | |
| 2021-09-02 | Flash FloodWequetequock, New London County | 0 | 0 | $769K | |
| 2021-09-02 | FloodHotchkissville, Litchfield County | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2021-09-01 | Flash FloodNorth Greenwich, Fairfield County | 0 | 0 | $5.6M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for floods and flash floods in Connecticut
FEMA has declared 11 disasters in Connecticut for floods and flash floods, counting its incident type and declarations that name flood in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 9 were major disasters, the latest on September 20, 2024.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-09-20 | DR-4820 | Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 3 |
| 2024-08-21 | EM-3612 | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 3 |
| 2024-01-13 | EM-3604 | Severe Storms, Flooding, and A Potential Dam Breach | 3 |
| 2018-12-05 | DR-4410 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 2 |
| 2010-04-23 | DR-1904 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 5 |
| 2007-05-11 | DR-1700 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 7 |
| 2005-12-16 | DR-1619 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 5 |
| 1992-12-17 | DR-972 | Winter Storm & Coastal Flooding | 3 |
| 1984-06-18 | DR-711 | Severe Storms & Flooding | 6 |
| 1982-06-14 | DR-661 | Severe Storms & Flooding | 8 |
| 1955-08-20 | DR-42 | Hurricane, Torrential Rain & Floods | 1 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.