Flooding in Ridgewood, New Jersey: the flood zone, the record, and what to do
Ridgewood is where the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook ends and the upper Saddle River gathers strength, and the village carries one of the larger flood insurance records in north-west Bergen County. Here is what the county plan, FEMA and the National Weather Service have published about it.
The Bergen County 2026 Hazard Mitigation Plan puts 10.77 per cent of Ridgewood's land in the FEMA one per cent annual chance flood zone. FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program has recorded 419 claims in the village, almost two thirds of them from Hurricane Irene in 2011 and Hurricane Floyd in 1999, and lists 31 repetitive-loss properties. Two watercourses do most of the damage: the Saddle River along the east of the village and the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook, which runs down through it to join the river.
The short version
- The Bergen County 2026 Hazard Mitigation Plan puts 10.77 per cent of Ridgewood in the one per cent flood zone, 12.42 per cent including the 0.2 per cent zone.
- FEMA records 419 NFIP claims in the village; Irene (134) and Floyd (133) account for most of them, and 31 properties are repetitive-loss.
- The Saddle River gauge at Ridgewood crested at a record 11.42 feet in Irene, against a major flood stage of 7 feet.
- The Ho-Ho-Kus Brook floods Marshall Street, Warren Place and East Glen Avenue at major stage, per the National Weather Service.
How much of the village is mapped as flood zone
Table 4.6-1 of the Bergen County 2026 Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan gives Ridgewood 399.79 acres of land in the FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, the zone with a one per cent chance of flooding in any year, out of 3,712.92 acres in all. That is 10.77 per cent. Adding the 0.2 per cent annual chance zone takes the figure to 12.42 per cent. The mapped land follows two narrow corridors, the Saddle River and the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook, plus a reach of Goffle Brook in the south-west that FEMA's Flood Insurance Study also maps. Most of the village sits on higher ground away from all three.
The insurance record
FEMA's OpenFEMA claims data for the Village of Ridgewood show 419 National Flood Insurance Program claims since the programme began. The worst year was 2011, with 152 claims, followed by 1999 with 138, 2021 with 50 and 2007 with 21. By named event, FEMA attributes 134 claims to Hurricane Irene, 133 to Hurricane Floyd, 50 to Hurricane Ida and 20 to the April 2007 nor'easter, so three storms account for most of the village's history. FEMA's multiple-loss records, as of 2 August 2026, list 31 repetitive-loss properties, 7 of them severe repetitive loss. The county plan, working from its own FEMA extract dated October 2024, counts 435 losses and 164 active flood policies, a different date and method rather than a different story. Set against the US Census Bureau's count of 9,191 housing units, 164 policies means most households here carry no flood insurance at all.
The Saddle River gauge at Route 17
The US Geological Survey gauge on the Saddle River at Ridgewood, beside State Route 17, measures water draining about 21.6 square miles. The National Weather Service sets minor flood stage there at 5 feet, moderate at 6 and major at 7. At 5 feet, minor flooding begins along East Saddle River Road, Queens Court and Kingsbridge Lane, and across Saddle River County Park. At 7 feet the Weather Service expects East Saddle River Road to close between East Glen Avenue and Bingham Road. The record crest is 11.42 feet on 28 August 2011, during Irene. FEMA's flood study puts that flood at 6,770 cubic feet per second, the second highest since the gauge opened in 1936, behind 6,800 in July 1945.
Ho-Ho-Kus Brook and the streets beside it
The Ho-Ho-Kus Brook enters from Ho-Ho-Kus to the north and runs south through the village to meet the Saddle River. Its gauge sits just upstream in Ho-Ho-Kus, and the National Weather Service's impact statement for a 7-foot reading there names Ridgewood streets: major flooding on Marshall Street, Warren Place, East Glen Avenue and East Ridgewood Road. Local reporting by Patch in September 2011 described about 30 households being evacuated by the fire department as the brook rushed past Veterans Field, with around four feet of water in basements on Marshall Street, and a washed-out sewer line letting floodwater into the sewer system. In October 2010, the county plan records, Glen Avenue closed near the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook bridge.
Flash flooding and the village centre
The county plan names Ridgewood among the urban centres that often experience flash flooding because of ageing or undersized stormwater systems and a high share of paved surface. A short, heavy burst of rain can overwhelm drains well away from any mapped stream. Patch reported in 2011 that Floyd had flooded Village Hall and the police station in 1999, and News 12 New Jersey reported Village Hall and a nearby turf field flooded again on 18 December 2023. The US Census Bureau puts the median year built of Ridgewood's homes at 1950, so many basements predate modern waterproofing, and groundwater and drain backups matter here as much as the brooks.
What the village has done
Ridgewood has kept much of its floodplain open. FEMA's flood study records that purchases by the village and the County Park Commission account for 241.5 acres of passive and active recreation land within the village, that the village acquired 35 acres of flood-prone land to be kept in its natural state. Ridgewood also takes part in FEMA's Community Rating System: the county plan lists it at Class 6 as of April 2025, which gives NFIP policies a 20 per cent discount inside the mapped flood zone and 10 per cent outside it. Looking ahead, the 2026 plan lists de-snagging waterways and elevating the Parks Department building among the village's flood priorities.
What this means if you own or rent here
Start by checking your address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center; if you are near the Saddle River, the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook or Goffle Brook, look at the 0.2 per cent zone as well as the one per cent zone. Near the named streets, follow the Ridgewood and Ho-Ho-Kus gauges when heavy rain is forecast. A new flood policy normally takes 30 days to start. Away from the streams, the likelier problem is water from below or from the drains, which a flood policy does not treat the same way; read your homeowners policy for its sewer backup and seepage wording, because whether a loss is covered is decided by your insurer and the policy. If you rent, the landlord's insurance does not protect your belongings, and contents cover is something you buy yourself.
Common questions
Does Ridgewood, NJ flood?
Parts of it do. FEMA has recorded 419 flood insurance claims in the village, concentrated along the Saddle River and the Ho-Ho-Kus Brook and in three storms: Floyd in 1999, Irene in 2011 and Ida in 2021. About 89 per cent of the village's land lies outside the one per cent flood zone, according to the county plan.
Which gauges should Ridgewood residents watch?
The Saddle River at Ridgewood (major flood stage 7 feet) and the Hohokus Brook at Ho-Ho-Kus (major flood stage 7 feet), both on the National Weather Service water site.
Do Ridgewood flood policies get a discount?
The county plan lists Ridgewood at Class 6 in FEMA's Community Rating System as of April 2025, which means a 20 per cent discount on NFIP premiums inside the mapped flood zone and 10 per cent outside it. Ask your agent to confirm how it applies to your own policy.
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