{"id":411113,"date":"2026-08-19T19:28:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T19:28:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/411113\/"},"modified":"2026-08-19T19:28:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T19:28:17","slug":"10-houston-zip-codes-with-flood-risk-fema-maps-may-miss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/411113\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Houston ZIP codes with flood risk FEMA maps may miss"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Texas A&M University study shows far more Harris County properties may face serious flood risk<\/a> than FEMA\u2019s flood maps suggest.<\/p>\n

Researchers from the university\u2019s Institute for a Disaster Resilient Texas found that about 389,500 properties have at least a 1% chance of flood damage in any given year. That is more than twice the roughly 184,800 properties FEMA currently includes in its regulatory floodplain, which covers areas with the same level of flood risk.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Using data provided by the institute, the Houston Chronicle created a searchable map<\/a> so Harris County residents can enter their address and see how their home\u2019s estimated flood risk differs between FEMA\u2019s assessments and those from IDRT.<\/p>\n

The institute\u2019s model shows substantially more flood risk than FEMA\u2019s maps<\/a> do in parts of west and west-central Houston, northeast Houston and downtown.<\/p>\n

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Researchers say there are several reasons for the gap. One of the biggest is that FEMA\u2019s current maps rely on out-of-date data, according to Wesley Highfield, a senior research scientist at IDRT.<\/p>\n

Harris County has not had a comprehensive map update in almost two decades. FEMA is working on a proposed overhaul, but the new maps could still take years to finalize.<\/p>\n

The two approaches also measure flood risk differently.\u00a0FEMA uses engineering models to predict how water moves during a storm. IDRT\u2019s data, on the other hand, draws from detailed federal flood insurance claims and analysis of past flood damage to estimate where properties are most at risk.<\/p>\n

FEMA REMOVALS: A little-known appeal process has erased thousands of wealthy Harris County homes from floodplains<\/a><\/p>\n

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Another distinction is that IDRT\u2019s approach shows flood risk on a spectrum so residents would not think of themselves as simply \u201cin\u201d or \u201cout\u201d of the flood zone, said Laura Stearns, a research specialist at IDRT.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s always flood risk around, especially somewhere like Houston,\u201d Stearns said. \u201cEven if you think you\u2019re outside of the floodplain around one of these major channels, there is more localized flooding that\u2019s happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here are three areas where the discrepancies between the two models are especially notable.<\/p>\n

West and west-central Houston<\/p>\n

\"Memorial<\/p>\n

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The clearest example is a broad stretch of west and west-central Houston just south of I-10. It starts around Uptown and Memorial and continues west along the Energy Corridor and farther west toward Katy.<\/p>\n

Much of the cluster is located in the Buffalo Bayou watershed, which has been hit repeatedly during past storms. The Memorial Day flood in 2015, Tax Day flood in 2016 and Hurricane Harvey in 2017 all strained the system, local and federal studies show.<\/p>\n

During Harvey, severe rainfall overwhelmed the watershed and filled the Addicks and Barker reservoirs to record levels. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was forced to release water from the reservoirs to protect the dams, leading to severe flooding in downstream neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

The cluster includes six of the 10 Harris County ZIP codes with the largest percentage gaps between the two flood-risk assessments.<\/p>\n

In each of those six ZIP codes \u2013 77079, 77024, 77027, 77042, 77056 and 77094 \u2013 researchers found that over 50% of the properties in the area are in their 100-year floodplain but not FEMA\u2019s maps. Altogether, that amounts to more than 22,000 high-risk properties that FEMA\u2019s official maps may be missing, according to the IDRT research. Thousands more are located elsewhere across west and west-central Houston.<\/p>\n

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Much of the additional risk captured by the institute\u2019s model is in places not immediately along the bayou itself, said Sam Brody, the institute\u2019s director. FEMA\u2019s floodplain mainly shows where water is expected to spread when bayous and rivers rise. The IDRT model, on the other hand, also recognizes places likely to flood when heavy rain collects in streets and neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

Brody said heavy development \u2013 including large parking lots, warehouses and other paved surfaces \u2013 may have elevated the flood risk there because now there is less open ground to absorb water during a storm.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s just a huge amount of impervious surface along that corridor,\u201d Brody said. \u201cIt\u2019s an area of prolific growth and sprawl.\u201d<\/p>\n

Northeast Houston<\/p>\n

\"East<\/p>\n

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Another large gap appears on Houston\u2019s Northeast side, particularly in lower-income neighborhoods such as\u00a0Settegast and East Houston.<\/p>\n

In ZIP codes 77028 and 77078, the institute identified about 8,000 properties with at least a 1% annual chance of flood damage. More than 6,900 of them fall outside FEMA\u2019s current regulatory floodplain.<\/p>\n

Notably, FEMA\u2019s updated modeling is beginning to recognize more of that additional risk.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The federal agency\u2019s new draft maps show significant floodplain expansions in northeast Houston. Residents and advocates from those communities have told the Chronicle<\/a> that the new estimates are finally catching up to the chronic flooding they have long experienced on the ground.<\/p>\n

Local studies have repeatedly highlighted insufficient drainage infrastructure in northeast Houston.<\/p>\n

A city-commissioned Hunting Bayou watershed study<\/a> flagged Settegast as one of the places where residents can experience flooding even in relatively common storms, citing insufficient roadside ditches and storm sewers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Another city report<\/a> found that water in East Houston often builds up on certain streets and low-lying areas when drainage systems cannot carry runoff away fast enough.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brody said chronic flooding can be especially easy to overlook in lower-income and historically underserved communities, where fewer families carry flood insurance or have the means to formally report damage.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many flood impacts that we are missing as a society that go unnoticed because people don\u2019t report them,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a chronic problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

Downtown Houston<\/p>\n

\"Downtown<\/p>\n

Downtown Houston is another key area where IDRT\u2019s research shows a much higher level of flood risk than FEMA\u2019s maps.<\/p>\n

In ZIP codes 77002 and 77010 \u2014 a small area covering Houston\u2019s core central business district \u2014 the institute found nearly 1,200 properties with at least a 1% annual chance of flood damage. Only about 70 are in FEMA\u2019s current regulatory floodplain.<\/p>\n

Downtown\u2019s dense concentration of buildings, streets and pavement means rainfall is more likely to run off quickly into streets and drainage systems rather than soak into the soil.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Stearns said the area has recorded a large number of past flood damage claims well beyond FEMA\u2019s floodplain boundaries.\u00a0<\/p>\n

During Tropical Storm Allison in 2001, for instance, downtown Houston sustained tens of millions of dollars in damage to buildings, the tunnel system, related infrastructure and parking garages, according to a Harris County report<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Researchers, however, cautioned against assuming any single factor explains the pattern, especially across such a small geographic area. Flooding can vary block by block depending on elevation, drainage, development and other local conditions. Even one chronically backed-up drain can influence where flood damage occurs, they said.<\/p>\n

The broader takeaway, Stearns said, is that residents should look beyond whether their home\u2019s floodplain designation would require them to purchase flood insurance. They should consider their home\u2019s risk profile more holistically so they could better protect themselves and their property, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, it’s always inherently tied back to that question of, \u2018Am I in or out of this area where I have to pay more money to live in?\u2019\u201d Stearns said. \u201cOur goal is to try to get away from that as much as we can.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Texas A&M University study shows far more Harris County properties may face serious flood risk than FEMA\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":411114,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[56,58,57],"class_list":["post-411113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411113","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=411113"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/411113\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/411114"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=411113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=411113"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=411113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}