Interact with the Global Flood Database. Filter by severity, cause, and timeline to identify flood-prone regions worldwide.
2
Identify Flood Zones
Zoom into regions of interest. Severity-colored dots reveal individual events across 114 countries spanning two decades.
3
Get Detailed Analysis
Sign up to access individual event records, displacement figures, flood extents, and 12-hazard climate risk assessments.
About the Global Flood Database
The Global Flood Database is a joint effort by Cloud to Street, the Dartmouth Flood Observatory (DFO), and Google Earth Engine. It combines satellite-observed flood extents with the DFO’s event catalog to create the most comprehensive record of large flood events worldwide.
This historical floods map visualizes 913 events spanning 2000 to 2018 across 114 countries. Each record includes geographic coordinates, flood cause (monsoonal rain, tropical cyclone, heavy rain, snowmelt, dam failure, and others), severity classification, and year of occurrence. The full dataset contains additional fields including fatality counts, displacement figures, inundated area, and event duration. These detailed fields are available through a free Continuuiti account.
Flood events cluster heavily in South and Southeast Asia (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Thailand, Myanmar), driven by monsoon systems. Other major hotspots include Central and West Africa, tropical Latin America, and the Mississippi and Yangtze river basins. Understanding these patterns is critical for flood risk assessment across infrastructure, real estate, and supply chain operations.
How Historical Floods Relate to Climate Change
Global warming amplifies the hydrological cycle. IPCC AR6 projects that for every 1°C of warming, extreme daily precipitation increases by approximately 7%, following the Clausius-Clapeyron relationship. Regions that already experience severe flooding face compounding risk as sea levels rise, storm intensities increase, and precipitation patterns shift.
Historical flood data provides a critical baseline for understanding how risk is evolving. The distinction between fluvial and pluvial flooding matters for projection: riverine floods respond to upstream precipitation changes, while surface water flooding responds to local rainfall intensity. Climate risk modeling frameworks combine these historical event records with hydrological models and climate projections to estimate future exposure under SSP scenarios.
Historical Flood Data Coverage
This historical floods map includes events classified by 8 cause types from the Global Flood Database. Here is the breakdown of the 913 events:
Cause
Events
Share
Heavy Rain
485
53.1%
Monsoonal Rain
169
18.5%
Tropical Cyclone
100
11.0%
Snowmelt
56
6.1%
Torrential Rain
62
6.8%
Dam Break
15
1.6%
Ice Jam
5
0.5%
Tsunami / Other
21
2.3%
Peak recording years were 2007 (103 events), 2003 (90 events), and 2005 (70 events). The 244 million people displaced by these 913 events underscore the scale of flood impact globally.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a historical flood map?›
A historical flood map shows the geographic distribution and patterns of past flood events. This interactive tool visualizes 913 satellite-verified flood events from the Global Flood Database (2000-2018), displaying them as a heatmap and severity-colored dots across 114 countries. Historical flood maps help identify flood-prone regions and understand long-term flood patterns.
What causes most historical floods?›
Heavy rainfall is the dominant cause, driving 53% of the 913 events in this database. Monsoonal rain accounts for 19% of events, concentrated in South and Southeast Asia. Tropical cyclones cause 11% of events, often producing the most severe floods. Snowmelt, dam breaks, and ice jams account for the remainder.
Which regions experience the most flooding?›
South and Southeast Asia dominate global flood records, with Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Myanmar accounting for a large share of both events and displaced populations. China’s Yangtze basin, West Africa, and tropical Latin America are also persistent hotspots. In the US, the Mississippi basin, Gulf Coast, and Pacific Northwest see frequent flooding.
What is the difference between fluvial and pluvial flooding?›
Fluvial (riverine) flooding occurs when rivers overflow their banks due to sustained or heavy rainfall upstream. Pluvial (surface water) flooding happens when rainfall overwhelms local drainage capacity, even away from rivers. The Global Flood Database primarily captures fluvial and coastal events that are visible from satellite imagery.
How is climate change affecting flood frequency?›
IPCC AR6 projects that extreme precipitation will increase approximately 7% per degree of warming, following the Clausius-Clapeyron relationship. Combined with rising sea levels and shifting storm patterns, flood risk is increasing in most regions. Historical flood data provides the baseline for projecting how future climate scenarios will alter flood frequency and severity.
Can I assess flood risk for a specific property or asset?›
Yes. Continuuiti’s climate risk platform evaluates flood risk as one of 12 physical hazards for any coordinate worldwide. Assessments include historical event proximity, flood depth modeling, and climate projections under multiple scenarios (SSP2-4.5, SSP5-8.5) with time horizons to 2050. Create a free account to access site-specific flood risk analysis.
