Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ, M.D. · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Oakhurst
Oakhurst isn’t graded for hazard risk: Oakhurst is a Census area inside a town, graded with the town. Flood insurance has paid 99 claims here since 1979.
What Oakhurst faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Strong wind
River and rain flooding
Hurricanes
Earthquakes
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
Does Oakhurst flood? Sometimes: 99 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Oakhurst, from FEMA’s records.
- The Torrential rain19 claims · $320K
- Hurricane Irene5 claims · $33K
Oakhurst isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Monmouth County.The storms Oakhurst remembers
None of the 20 disasters declared for Monmouth County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Oakhurst itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 201123 flood claims paidThe year of Hurricane Irene, declared for Monmouth County
- 200519 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 202613 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Monmouth County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Old photos of Oakhurst after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Oakhurst archive →Get ready for what Oakhurst faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Oakhurst
Does Oakhurst flood?
Flood insurance has paid 99 claims in Oakhurst since 1979, $2.1M in all. The most claims came from Torrential rain (19).
Is Oakhurst in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Monmouth County, 70% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 7.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Oakhurst?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Oakhurst’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Oakhurst?
By flood claims, Torrential rain: 19 paid, $320K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Oakhurst.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Oakhurst’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.