Flood in Delaware
Every flood event the National Weather Service has filed in Delaware, year by year, with the most significant episodes. Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
The most significant on the map
The most significant flood episodes in Delaware.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 167
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 1
- Damage
- $600,000
Every year
The most significant
Ranked by deaths, injuries, damage and size together.
- Tornado and Tropical Storm in Delaware, August 27 to 30, 2011Hurricane Irene produced heavy flooding rain, widespread tropical storm force wind gusts, a confirmed tornado near Lewes in Sussex County, moderate to severe coastal flooding and beach erosion and caused two flooding related deaths, forced evacuations near the coast over the…
- Winter Storm and Flooding in Delaware, January 25 to 26, 2000The most intense winter storm since the Blizzard of 1996 buried Delaware on the 25th with 6 to 12 inches of snow, sleet and freezing rain, wind gusts as strong as 60 mph along the shore, minor to moderate coastal flooding and drifts as high as four feet.
- Flooding and Coastal Flood in Delaware, October 28 to 30, 2012Post Tropical Storm Sandy caused an estimated $5.5 million dollars of damage across the three counties in Delaware. The damage estimates from the state were broken down to $2.8 million in New Castle County, $832,000 in Kent County and $1.9 million in Sussex County.
- Flash Flood and Flooding in Delaware, September 29 to 30, 2016A slow moving frontal boundary coupled with tropical moisture advecting northward ahead of the front led to rounds of heavy showers in Delaware from the 27th into the next couple of days.
- Flood and Coastal Flood in Delaware, September 1 to 5, 2006The combination of the remnants of Tropical Storm Ernnesto and a large high pressure system over eastern Canada produced heavy rain and flooding, strong and in some cases damaging winds, tidal flooding and beach erosion in Delaware.
- Flash Flood and Flood in Delaware, June 25 to 26, 2006Repeating thunderstorms with torrential downpours dropped a Doppler Radar estimated six to eight inches of rain across southwestern parts of Sussex County during the morning of the 25th. This caused extensive roadway, field and stream flooding.
- Flood in Delaware, October 1, 2010A series of low pressure systems that moved north along a slowly moving cold front brought heavy rain into Delaware on September 30th and October 1st. Event precipitation totals average 4 to 8 inches with the highest amounts in New Castle County.
- Flash Flooding and Flood in Delaware, July 12 to 13, 2013A low pressure system that formed on a frontal boundary helped produce showers and thunderstorms with very heavy downpours and led to flooding and flash flooding in Delaware.
- Flooding and Heavy Rain in Delaware, July 28 to 29, 2017A rare summertime Nor'easter tracked just offshore producing heavy rain, thunderstorms and wind. Coastal flooding and beach erosion also occurred.
- Flooding and Heavy Rain in Delaware, August 7, 2017Showers and Thunderstorms developed along a north of a warm frontal boundary. With a moist environment in place, the storms produced heavy rain and flash flooding.
- Flash Flooding and Flood in Delaware, July 22 to 24, 2017A stalled frontal boundary was the focus for several rounds of thunderstorms that produced damaging winds and flooding in spots.
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in Delaware, July 6 to 7, 2017A stationary frontal boundary draped across the Delmarva lead to a period of heavy rainfall during the afternoon and evening of July 6th, particularly over northern Delaware and northeast Maryland.
- Flood and Coastal Flood in Delaware, December 21, 2012A deep low pressure system tracked across the Lower Great Lakes northeastward into the St. Lawrence Valley from the evening of the 20th into the daytime of the 21st.
- Flooding and Heavy Rain in Delaware, December 9 to 10, 2009An intense low pressure system that moved through the Great Lakes on the 9th produced a strong southerly flow of moist air from the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean. Rain began falling during the evening of the 8th and ended by Noon EST on the 9th.
- Flood and Lightning Strikes in Delaware, August 21, 2016Thunderstorms developed near a triple point of a low pressure system. These thunderstorms produced lightning and heavy rainfall as they moved through the region.
- Flood and High Wind in Delaware, October 9, 2016Hurricane Matthew tracked up the east coast and interacted with a cold front. This interaction brought increased winds and a period of heavy rain to the region. Rainfall amounts were from two to four inches in Sussex county to around two inches in Kent and New Castle counties.
- Flooding in Delaware, March 31, 2017Low pressure with an occluding frontal boundary moved through the region. With this system periods of heavy rain fell on the 31st. The heavy rain led to localized flooding issues.
- Flooding in Delaware, October 14, 2001The combination of spring astronomical tides caused by the new moon and a strong southeast onshore flow preceding a cold front produced minor tidal flooding at the time of high tide during the evening of the 14th along the Delaware Coast and Bay.
- Flood and Damaging Winds in Delaware, February 24 to 25, 2016A strong low pressure system moving north through the Great Lakes region, combined with its associated warm front and cold front, copious amounts of moisture, and low level jet, produced strong to severe thunderstorms, heavy rain, flash flooding, and stream flooding in Delaware…
- Flood and High Wind in Delaware, March 21, 2000The tight gradient (difference in surface pressures between a low pressure system along the Middle Atlantic Coastal Waters and a strong high pressure system in the Canadian Maritimes), produced high winds and some minor tidal flooding during the evening of the 21st.
- Flash Flood and Flood in Delaware, January 1 to 2, 2007The New Year began on a very wet note across Delaware as a deep southerly flow from the Gulf of Mexico dropped heavy rain across the state during the first half of the day.
- Flooding in Delaware, April 15 to 16, 2007An intense nor'easter brought heavy rain and flooding to Delaware on the 15th and strong to high winds to the region on the 16th. Rain began falling during the evening on the 14th, but fell at its heaviest from about 3 a.m. EDT through about 3 p.m. EDT on the 15th.
- Flood and Heavy Rain in Delaware, December 11 to 12, 2008Heavy rain and flooding affected Delaware on the 11th and 12th. Rain began during the afternoon of the 10th and continued through the 11th into the early morning on the 12th. Rain fell at its heaviest from the afternoon of the 11th until just after Midnight EST on the 12th.
- Flooding in Delaware, October 28, 2009A pair of low pressure systems that emerged from the Gulf Of Mexico and passed southeast of Delaware on the 27th and 28th gave the state nearly 48 hours of steady rain from the evening of the 26th into the afternoon of the 28th.
- Flooding and Heavy Rain in Delaware, September 11, 2009A low pressure system that formed off the Carolina coast on the 6th meandered slowly northeast into the 10th before it started to retrograde toward the Delaware and New Jersey coasts the night of the 10th.
More
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24.