Global Flood Records (1985–2023)

5,500+ flood events across 170+ countries from 1985 to 2023, tracking fatalities, displacement, severity, and cause.
# ﹟
Glide ﹟
Start Date
End Date
Country
Area (km²)
Source
Main Cause
Fatalities
Displaced
Severity
Flood impact index
1 5506 1/6/24 1/9/24 Australia 605 News Heavy rain 0 0 1.5 3.6
2 5505 1/1/24 1/5/24 Germany 47,931 News Heavy rain 0 0 1 5.4
3 5503 12/30/23 1/5/24 France 7,396 News Heavy rain 0 491 1 4.7
4 5504 12/28/23 1/4/24 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 21,869 FloodList Heavy rain 0 130 1 5.2
5 5495 12/25/23 12/29/23 South Africa 91,791 News Heavy rain 21 5600 1 5.7
6 5498 12/22/23 12/28/23 Lesotho 3,034 News Heavy rain 0 0 1 4.3
7 5500 12/22/23 12/25/23 Thailand 21,103 News Heavy rain 6 0 1 4.9
8 5496 12/18/23 12/21/23 United States of America 89,167 USGS Heavy rain 0 0 1.5 5.7
9 5497 12/16/23 12/16/23 Argentina 1,145 News Heavy rain 13 0 1 3.1
10 5494 12/13/23 12/18/23 Australia 9,740 FloodList Heavy rain 0 0 1 4.8
11 5501 12/10/23 12/13/23 India 23,760 News Heavy rain 0 7500 1 5
12 5502 12/10/23 12/13/23 Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 261,750 News Heavy rain 8 0 1 6
13 5493 12/4/23 12/6/23 United States of America 53,724 FloodList Heavy rain 1 0 1 5.2
14 5499 FL-2023-000259-COG 12/1/23 12/29/23 Congo 175,295 News Heavy rain 7 4928 1.5 6.9
15 5491 FL-2023-000249-AGO 11/30/23 12/4/23 Angola 237,560 News Heavy rain 30 20000 2 6.4
16 5488 11/17/23 11/20/23 United States of America 3,194 News Heavy rain 0 8 1 4.1
17 5490 FL-2023-000236-DOM 11/17/23 11/18/23 Dominican Republic,Haiti 10,138 News Heavy rain 34 37000 2 4.6
18 5486 11/2/23 11/7/23 Ethiopia 311,914 News Heavy rain 20 12000 2 6.6
19 5487 11/2/23 11/3/23 Italy 19,489 FloodList Heavy rain 3 300 1 4.6
20 5484 10/30/23 11/4/23 Paraguay 51,408 News Heavy rain 6 0 1 5.5
21 5485 FL-2023-000232-COL 10/30/23 11/3/23 Colombia 34,324 News Heavy rain 0 0 1 5.2
22 5492 10/29/23 11/2/23 Malawi 5,157 FloodList Heavy rain 1 0 1 4.4
23 5483 10/26/23 10/27/23 Burundi 1,591 News Heavy rain 7 0 1 3.5
24 5479 TC-2023-000212-YEM 10/24/23 10/31/23 Yemen 13,013 News Tropical cyclone 1 15939 1.5 5.2
25 5478 10/18/23 10/21/23 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 22,157 FloodList Heavy rain 4 340 1.5 5.1
26 5477 FL-2023-000216-KEN 10/15/23 11/11/23 Kenya 229,835 News Heavy rain 46 58000 1.5 7
27 5473 10/6/23 10/10/23 Myanmar 4,674 FloodList Heavy rain 5 14934 1.5 4.5
28 5475 10/6/23 10/7/23 Sri Lanka 21,227 News Heavy rain 7 0 1 4.6
29 5482 10/4/23 10/4/23 India 21,138 News Ice jam/break-up 92 12400 1.5 4.5
30 5489 10/4/23 11/30/23 Somalia 637,728 News Heavy rain 55 695000 2 7.9
31 5474 10/3/23 10/10/23 Brazil 93,711 FloodList Heavy rain 2 12289 1.5 6.1
32 5480 9/28/23 9/29/23 United States of America 6,665 News Torrential rain 0 0 1 4.1
33 5471 9/25/23 9/25/23 Mexico 80 FloodList Heavy rain 8 0 1 1.9
34 5472 9/24/23 9/25/23 Guatemala 110 FloodList Heavy rain 6 0 1 2.3
35 5469 9/23/23 9/26/23 South Africa 132,164 News Heavy rain 11 2710 1.5 5.9
36 5470 FL-2023-000199-SDN 9/15/23 9/22/23 Sudan 72,376 News Heavy rain 0 8000 1.5 5.9
37 5476 FL-2023-000215-GHA 9/15/23 10/24/23 Ghana 5,412 News Dam/Levy break or release 0 26000 1 5.3
38 5466 9/10/23 9/11/23 Libya 211 FloodList Dam/Levy break or release 5300 40000 2 2.9
39 5465 9/9/23 9/9/23 United States of America 805 FloodList Heavy rain 0 0 1 2.9
40 5481 9/9/23 9/13/23 United States of America 98,217 News Heavy rain 2 0 1 5.7
41 5463 9/8/23 9/8/23 China,Hong Kong Special Administrative Region 108,684 FloodList Torrential rain 2 11000 1.5 5.2
42 5464 9/8/23 9/8/23 Japan 5,091 FloodList Heavy rain 3 40 1 3.7
43 5468 9/7/23 9/8/23 Myanmar 1,144 News Heavy rain 0 1000 1 3.4
44 5462 9/5/23 9/7/23 Greece,Türkiye, Bulgaria 11,585 FloodList Torrential rain 11 340 1.5 4.7
45 5459 9/2/23 9/3/23 Algeria 234,541 FloodList Heavy rain 8 0 1 5.7
46 5460 9/2/23 9/4/23 Spain 452,296 FloodList Torrential rain 0 0 1.5 6.3
47 5461 FL-2023-000169-BRA 9/2/23 9/4/23 Brazil 285,553 FloodList Heavy rain 46 25855 2 6.2
48 5467 FL-2023-000167-LBR 9/1/23 9/4/23 Liberia 9,264 Relief web Heavy rain 0 520 1 4.6
49 5458 8/27/23 8/29/23 United States of America 4,931 FloodList Heavy rain 0 0 1 4.2
50 5457 8/23/23 8/23/23 Tajikistan 24,805 FloodList Heavy rain 13 400 1 4.4
51 5455 8/22/23 8/22/23 United States of America 9 FloodList Heavy rain 0 150 1 1
52 5456 8/22/23 8/23/23 Dominican Republic 3,739 FloodList Heavy rain 0 300 1 3.9
53 5453 8/17/23 8/18/23 Mexico 161,862 FloodList Tropical cyclone 1 0 1 5.5
54 5454 8/17/23 8/21/23 Chile 83,719 FloodList Heavy rain 3 32728 1.5 5.8
55 5452 8/3/23 8/4/23 Slovenia 7,874 FloodList Heavy rain 3 4000 1.5 4.4
56 5450 7/22/23 7/22/23 Afghanistan 5,080 FloodList Heavy rain 12 0 1 3.7
57 5451 7/22/23 7/22/23 Canada 23,775 FloodList Heavy rain 0 0 1 4.4
58 5449 7/20/23 7/20/23 Bhutan 61 FloodList Heavy rain 23 0 1 1.8
59 5448 7/19/23 7/20/23 United States of America 1,782 FloodList Torrential rain 0 0 1 3.6
60 5446 7/15/23 7/16/23 United States of America 676 FloodList Torrential rain 3 0 1 3.1
61 5444 7/10/23 7/12/23 United States of America 48,826 FloodList Heavy rain 1 150 1.5 5.3
62 5439 7/9/23 7/10/23 United States of America 40,743 FloodList Heavy rain 1 0 1 4.9
63 5441 7/9/23 7/13/23 Russian Federation 6,990 FloodList Torrential rain 0 240 1 4.5
64 5445 7/9/23 7/13/23 India 4,988 FloodList Heavy rain 0 35000 2 4.7
65 5447 7/9/23 7/16/23 Republic of Korea 33,455 FloodList Heavy rain 30 9000 2 5.7
66 5442 7/8/23 7/10/23 Türkiye 34,202 FloodList Heavy rain 1 500 1 5
67 5440 7/7/23 7/9/23 Indonesia 1,053 FloodList Heavy rain 5 50 1.5 3.7
68 5443 7/7/23 7/10/23 Brazil 7,360 FloodList Heavy rain 1 3578 1 4.5
69 5438 7/6/23 7/6/23 Spain 1,124 FloodList Heavy rain 0 0 1 3.1
70 5437 6/27/23 6/28/23 South Africa 2,090 FloodList Heavy rain 7 151 1 3.6
71 5435 6/24/23 6/24/23 Serbia 1,222 FloodList Torrential rain 2 0 1 3.1
72 5436 6/23/23 6/23/23 Chile 99,467 FloodList Heavy rain 2 5000 1.5 5.2
73 5434 6/21/23 6/24/23 Ghana 22,668 FloodList Heavy rain 8 0 1 5
74 5431 6/17/23 6/19/23 Nepal 14,824 FloodList Heavy rain 5 80 1.5 4.8
75 5430 6/16/23 6/18/23 Brazil 19,925 FloodList Torrential rain 11 4000 1.5 5
76 5433 6/16/23 6/20/23 India 184,454 News Tropical cyclone 12 150000 2 6.3
77 5432 6/14/23 6/22/23 India 119,900 FloodList Heavy rain 0 2211 1.5 6.2
78 5428 6/10/23 6/11/23 Pakistan 14,688 FloodList Heavy rain 20 0 1 4.5
79 5429 6/8/23 6/10/23 Cuba 34,826 FloodList Heavy rain 1 7259 1.5 5.2
80 5426 6/4/23 6/5/23 Türkiye 27,391 FloodList Heavy rain 2 0 1 4.7
81 5423 6/3/23 6/5/23 Haiti 1,197 FloodList Heavy rain 42 13390 1.5 3.7
82 5424 6/3/23 6/3/23 Algeria 36,905 FloodList Heavy rain 6 0 1 4.6
83 5425 6/3/23 6/4/23 Ecuador 16,077 FloodList Heavy rain 0 0 1 4.5
84 5421 6/2/23 6/4/23 Japan 14,311 FloodList Heavy rain 4 0 1 4.6
85 5422 6/1/23 6/2/23 China 3,350 FloodList Heavy rain 2 0 1 3.8
86 5427 5/28/23 5/28/23 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 3,727 FloodList Heavy rain 4 0 1 3.6
87 5420 5/23/23 5/23/23 Algeria 23,884 FloodList Heavy rain 2 0 1 4.4
88 5419 5/17/23 5/18/23 Bosnia and Herzegovina 4,114 FloodList Heavy rain 0 10 1 3.9
89 5418 5/16/23 5/25/23 Italy 8,610 FloodList Heavy rain 15 36000 1.5 5.1
90 5417 5/12/23 5/17/23 Croatia 17,668 FloodList Heavy rain 0 0 1 5
91 5414 5/9/23 5/10/23 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 8,539 FloodList Heavy rain 0 72 1 4.2
92 5415 5/9/23 5/10/23 Sierra Leone 460 FloodList Heavy rain 7 0 1 3
93 5413 5/4/23 5/5/23 Democratic Republic of the Congo 130 FloodList Heavy rain 394 12000 2 2.7
94 5412 5/3/23 5/3/23 Italy 830 FloodList Dam/Levy break or release 2 250 1.5 3.1
95 5411 5/2/23 5/3/23 Rwanda 6,122 FloodList Heavy rain 127 1480 1.5 4.3
96 5416 5/1/23 5/5/23 Ethiopia 111,179 FloodList Heavy rain 38 9110 1.5 5.9
97 5410 4/29/23 4/30/23 Pakistan 38,422 FloodList Heavy rain 2 0 1 4.9
98 5408 4/21/23 4/22/23 Brazil 52,960 FloodList Heavy rain 0 9261 1 5
99 5409 4/21/23 4/30/23 Kenya 861 FloodList Heavy rain 0 11300 1.5 4.1
100 5406 4/15/23 4/16/23 Ukraine 298,423 FloodList Heavy rain 0 200 1 5.8

Global Flood Records (1985–2023) — Analysis

Recorded flood events tripled from ~50/year in 1985 to 150–300/year by the 2000s, driven by better reporting and climate change

Three catastrophic events account for 61% of all 700,000+ flood fatalities: Bangladesh 1991, Indian Ocean 2004, and Myanmar 2008

About this dataset

This dataset, compiled from peer-reviewed sources and published on Zenodo, catalogs 5,503 flood events across 170+ countries spanning 1985–2023, tracking fatalities, displaced persons, affected area, and cause for each event. The most striking pattern is how concentrated the death toll is: three catastrophic events — the 1991 Bangladesh cyclone, the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and 2008's Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar — account for roughly 61% of the 700,000+ total flood fatalities, even though the median flood event kills just 4 people. Heavy rain drives 62% of all events, yet the US leads in total event count (487) while ranking far lower in deaths — a testament to infrastructure and early warning systems — while Bangladesh (147,109 deaths) and Thailand (163,576) bear vastly disproportionate human cost. Perhaps most surprising: recorded flood events tripled from ~50 per year in 1985 to a peak of 297 in 2003, partly from climate change and partly because reporting has improved dramatically. This record matters because it reveals where flood risk is genuinely lethal versus merely frequent, and why event count alone is a misleading proxy for disaster exposure.

Key Findings

  • 5,503 flood events in 170+ countries from 1985–2023 killed over 700,000 people and displaced 668 million
  • Heavy rain caused 62% of all floods; tropical cyclones caused 7% of events but a disproportionate share of deaths
  • Asia dominates both frequency and impact — India, China, Bangladesh, and the Philippines account for 20% of all events
  • The US leads in total event count (487) but ranks low in fatalities, reflecting better infrastructure and early warning
  • Annual displaced persons peaked at 57 million in 1999 and have declined to 2–5 million since 2015

Visualizations

Annual Flood Fatalities (1985–2023)
Primary Causes of Flooding
Most Flood-Prone Countries by Event Count
Deadliest Countries by Total Fatalities

Expand Analysis

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