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California · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index

Calaveras County, CA

6 FEMA disaster declarations (2015–2025), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Fire.

6
FEMA declarations
3
Major disasters
87
NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
Fire
Top hazard

FEMA's National Risk Index places Calaveras County in the top 13% of U.S. counties for overall natural-hazard risk, and its FEMA disaster-declaration count is higher than 81% of all 2,729 counties tracked.

How does Calaveras County compare?

FEMA disaster declarations, this county versus the California county average and the national county average.

Calaveras County
6
California county avg
6.9
National county avg
3.7

How disaster-prone is Calaveras County?

Calaveras County, California has recorded 6 FEMA disaster declarations between 2015 and 2025, of which 3 were classified as Major Disaster declarations (DR) requiring federal individual and public assistance. That puts the county's average at 0.6 declarations per year across a 10-year record, or roughly 13% below the California county average of 6.9 and 60% above the national county average of 3.7. Declaration counts reflect federal recognition of event severity, not pure hazard frequency, smaller incidents handled locally never appear in FEMA's ledger.

The dominant disaster type on record is Fire, with 2 of 6 declarations falling under this category. FEMA's National Risk Index assigns this county an overall risk rating of Relatively Moderate (composite score 86.6/100), driven by an Expected Annual Loss rating of Relatively Moderate equivalent to roughly $53.4M in annualized losses. Social vulnerability scores Relatively Moderate and community resilience scores Relatively Low - two factors that modify raw hazard exposure into actual harm. The single highest-risk natural hazard identified for this county is Wildfire (Relatively High).

NFIP flood insurance claims data for this county is not present in the FEMA claims extract, which typically indicates either low historical flood activity or low policy penetration. Taken together, these indicators place Calaveras County at a moderate relative risk level for federally recognized disasters. Households should pair this historical lens with forward-looking hazard maps, flood zones, wildfire risk overlays, and seismic zones published by FEMA and state emergency management, before making preparedness, insurance, or relocation decisions.

Risk Assessment

How Calaveras County's disaster history compares to state and national averages.

Risk Level

Moderate

vs. California Avg

-13%

State avg: 6.9

vs. National Avg

+60%

National avg: 3.7

Avg Per Year

0.6

Over 10 years

FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Calaveras County

Calaveras County NRI risk profile 8-axis FEMA National Risk Index radar showing per-hazard composite scores for Earthquake 25, Flood 0, Hurricane 0, Tornado 8, Wildfire 70, Drought 70, Heat Wave 48, Winter Storm 70. Overall composite 36 of 100, classified Moderate. Earthquake Flood Hurricane Tornado Wildfire Drought Heat Wave Winter Storm 36 composite
Calaveras County NRI risk profile FIPS 06009 · composite 36/100 (Moderate)

The radar plots Calaveras County's relative exposure to the eight headline natural hazards used by the FEMA National Risk Index. Each axis is the qualitative NRI risk rating (Very Low through Very High) re-expressed on a 0-100 scale so that the polygon shape lets you compare a county against another at a glance.

FEMA Records

6

Total declarations

NRI Source

FEMA 2023

Latest NRI release

County FIPS

06009

CA state code

Source: FEMA National Risk Index FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, 2023 release

Disaster Types

Breakdown of 6 FEMA disaster declarations in Calaveras County by incident type.

Fire 2
Flood 2
Severe Storm 1
Biological 1

Declaration Types

FEMA categorizes declarations as Major Disasters (DR), Emergencies (EM), or Fire Management Assistance (FM).

Major Disaster - 3 50.0%

of all 6 declarations

Fire Management - 2 33.3%

of all 6 declarations

Emergency - 1 16.7%

of all 6 declarations

FEMA Declarations Timeline

Disaster declarations per year for Calaveras County.

Year Declarations
2025 1
2023 3
2020 1
2015 1

Disaster Declarations

All 6 FEMA disaster declarations for Calaveras County, California.

DR# Title Type Incident Date
5612 2-7 FIRE FM Fire 2025-09-03
4699 SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES DR Severe Storm 2023-04-03
3592 SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES EM Flood 2023-03-10
4683 SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES DR Flood 2023-01-14
4482 COVID-19 PANDEMIC DR Biological 2020-03-22
5111 BUTTE FIRE FM Fire 2015-09-10

Storm Events in California

NOAA severe weather data for California (2015–2025). Storm event data is tracked at the state level.

Storm Type Events Fatalities Injuries Property Damage
High Wind 4,403 14 29 $228.9M
Flood 3,518 32 31 $990.7M
Heavy Snow 1,916 6 0 $1.6M
Dense Fog 1,665 55 150 $2.8M
Strong Wind 1,482 40 43 $15.7M

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015–2025

FEMA National Risk Index

FEMA's composite risk score combining 18 natural hazard types, social vulnerability, and community resilience for Calaveras County.

Overall Risk

Relatively Moderate

Score: 86.6/100

Expected Annual Loss

Relatively Moderate

$53.4M/year

Social Vulnerability

Relatively Moderate

Community Resilience

Relatively Low

Hazard Risk Breakdown

Risk rating for each of the 18 FEMA NRI natural hazard types in Calaveras County.

Wildfire Relatively High
Drought Relatively High
Landslide Relatively Moderate
Winter Weather Relatively High
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Volcanic Activity Very Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Avalanche Very Low
Strong Wind Very Low
Tornado Very Low
Hail Very Low
Cold Wave No Rating

Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) Ratings reflect relative scores among all US counties. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri

Counties with Similar Risk in California

Other California counties with similar disaster declaration counts.

Disaster Preparedness Guides

Frequently Asked Questions

How many natural disasters has Calaveras County, California had?
Calaveras County, California has received 6 FEMA disaster declarations from 2015 to 2025. Of these, 3 were major disaster declarations.
What is the most common disaster type in Calaveras County?
The most common disaster type in Calaveras County is Fire, with 2 declarations. Other disaster types include Flood (2), Severe Storm (1), Biological (1).
How does Calaveras County's disaster risk compare to the California average?
Calaveras County has 6 disaster declarations, which is 13% lower than the California county average of 6.9 declarations. Compared to the national county average of 3.7, it is 60% higher.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Calaveras County received?
Calaveras County has received 3 major disaster declarations, representing 50% of all 6 disaster declarations. Major disaster declarations typically involve significant damage requiring federal assistance.
What types of storms are most common in California?
The most common storm types in California include High Wind (4,403 events), Flood (3,518 events), Heavy Snow (1,916 events). NOAA storm event data covers severe weather from 2015 to 2025.
What was the worst year for disasters in Calaveras County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Calaveras County was 2023, with 3 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 2015 to 2025.
What is the overall disaster risk level for Calaveras County?
Based on FEMA declaration history, Calaveras County has a moderate disaster risk level with 6 total declarations. This county has a moderate number of disaster declarations.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Calaveras County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Calaveras County, California has an overall risk score of 86.6 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively Moderate and community resilience is Relatively Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $53.4M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Calaveras County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Calaveras County is Wildfire (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Drought (Relatively High) and Landslide (Relatively Moderate). These scores are based on FEMA's analysis of historical event frequency, exposed assets, and community vulnerability.

Data Sources & Methodology

Disaster declaration data comes from the FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 API, which includes all federally declared disasters, emergencies, and fire management assistance grants.

Storm event data is sourced from the NOAA Storm Events Database (2015–2025), which tracks significant weather events including thunderstorms, tornadoes, floods, and winter storms.

This data is provided for informational purposes only. FEMA disaster declarations represent federal response actions and may not capture all local emergencies or weather events.

What this means for Calaveras County

Calaveras County, CA has 6 FEMA disaster declarations on record, a moderate historical disaster load, 13% below the California county average.

  • Its most common federal declaration type is major disaster (3 of 6) - know the hazards most likely here before they happen. California overview
  • See how this county ranks against the rest of the country for disaster frequency. Most-disaster rankings
  • Read how to read FEMA declarations, NRI risk scores, and what they do and don't tell you. Disaster-data guide

Historical declaration counts describe past federal response, not a forecast. For current threats, follow the National Weather Service and local officials; in an emergency call 911.

All federal data sources used on this page
Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainHazard Editorial

Verify with FEMA → · Verify with FEMA NRI → · Verify with NOAA →

Every figure on PlainHazard is rendered directly from FEMA federal disaster data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on FEMA federal disaster data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.