Implemented in the map tool
National Storm Surge Risk Maps
NOAA/NWS/NHC Storm Surge Unit · released Ongoing
Visit National Storm Surge Risk Maps
SLOSH-model “Maximum of MEOWs” hurricane storm-surge inundation maps, one per hurricane category — California coverage is limited to categories 1 and 2 in Southern California.
General Information
- Geographic scope within coastal California
- Southern California only (hurricane categories 1–2)
- Tool release year and updates
- Ongoing
Projected Flood Information
- Annual flood risk
- No
- Annual flood risk (various return periods)
- No
- Base flood elevation
- No
- Coastal groundwater flooding
- No
- Erosion projections
- No
- FEMA flood zones
- No
- High tide flooding thresholds (minor/moderate/major)
- No
- King tide
- No
- Mapping uncertainty / confidence layers
- No
- Marsh migration space
- No
- Near-100-year storm scenario
- No
- Shoreline erosion
- No
- Storm surge / extreme tide
- Yes
- Stormwater / compound flooding
- No
- Wave run-up
- No
Shoreline Processes
- Coastal flood thresholds
- No
- Coastal groundwater
- No
- Compound flooding with stormwater runoff
- No
- Dynamic hydrodynamic modeling
- No
- Erosion / shoreline change
- No
- Habitat-based risk reduction
- No
- High tide flooding
- No
- Hurricane storm surge
- Yes
- King tide
- No
- Levee overtopping
- No
- Marsh migration
- No
- Marsh migration / habitat change
- No
- Regulatory base flood elevation
- No
- Riverine and coastal flood zones
- No
- SLR inundation
- No
- Shoreline erosion
- No
- Shoreline overtopping
- No
- Storm surge / extreme tide
- No
- Tide-gauge monitoring
- No
- Wave run-up
- No
Data, Reports, and Summary Information Available
- Reports, summary info, or other analyses available for download
- Tiled map imagery only; no per-feature query or downloadable report.
General Information Regarding Sea Level Rise Model
- Base sea level rise model
- None — a present-day worst-case hurricane storm-surge scenario, not a sea-level-rise projection.
Strengths and Limitations
- Top 3 strengths
- Purpose-built hurricane storm-surge modeling (SLOSH) from NOAA's National Hurricane Center
- Shows a genuine worst-case scenario across multiple hurricane categories
- Free, public, and nationally consistent methodology
- Top 3 limitations
- California coverage is limited to Southern California, categories 1–2 only
- Tiles-only service — no click-to-inspect or downloadable data
- Hurricane-driven surge, not the more common California storm systems (atmospheric rivers, extratropical storms)