FEMA Records
41
Very high volume
California · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Shasta County, CA
41 FEMA disaster declarations (1965-2023), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Fire.
- 41
- FEMA declarations
- 20
- Major disasters
- 93
- NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
- Fire
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Shasta County. Its 41 FEMA declarations are 44% above the California county mean and exceed the count for 97% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 7%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 7%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Moderate
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 41
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 256
- NFIP flood insurance claims filed
FEMA's National Risk Index and its declaration registry are separate measures. This county's registry includes Fire Management Assistance (FM) records, which are not presidential disaster declarations, alongside Major Disaster (DR) and Emergency (EM) records.
How does Shasta County compare?
Shasta County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time
41 Top 3% higher than 97% of 3,266 counties
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 · 2026-08-03
Shasta County's FEMA Risk Index score
FEMA National Risk Index composite score vs. the California county average
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Shasta County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $71.7M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively High), while Wildfire carries the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High). EAL and risk score use different inputs; they need not agree.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025 release) - Expected Annual Loss vs composite risk rating by hazard.
What does Shasta County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 256 paid claims, totaling $4.9M. PlainHazard uses 50-499 claims for this descriptive band; FEMA does not publish it as a safety or coverage category. The $19.0K average describes payments on recorded claims only, leaving uninsured damage and properties without a claim outside the measure.
The declaration register points in the busier direction. Shasta County's 41 federal records stand 44% above the California county mean of 28.5. That comparison describes how often federal action was recorded, including any Major Disaster, Emergency, and Fire Management entries shown on this page; it does not convert the count into future probability.
FEMA National Risk Index
This county sits among the highest-risk counties nationally on FEMA's National Risk Index, a composite score of 93.4/100 (Relatively Moderate). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Moderate (roughly $135.5M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability reads Relatively Moderate and community resilience Relatively Moderate, both critical modifiers of realized harm here. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Wildfire stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at roughly once every 114 years here.
Declaration frequency
The FEMA register is busy by both local and national comparisons. It contains 41 entries for Shasta County, including 20 Major Disaster records, 44% above the California county mean. Across the 58-year span, that works out to 0.7 declarations a year. Fire leads the file with 22 entries. Declaration type records the federal action taken, not every assistance program approved.
78 /100
Historical Activity Index
Very High historical activity
Shasta County, CA · PlainHazard-derived composite from federal records
This 0–100 index is an explicit PlainHazard composite from FEMA declaration history only on the county surface (this DB has no county-level NOAA damage row) . It is not FEMA's National Risk Index, not a forecast, and not a safety, insurance, or preparedness rating. Open the calculator · Methodology
FEMA Declarations (1953–present) Very High
30/30
41 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (2.0x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
18/25
41 declarations (1.4x state county average of 29)
Major Disaster Share Moderate
12/25
20 of 41 declarations are major disasters (49%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
18/20
7 different disaster types declared in Shasta County
Historical Declaration Activity
Activity Band
High
vs. California Avg
+44%
State avg: 28.5
vs. National Avg
+98%
National avg: 20.7
Avg Per Year
0.7
Over 58 years
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Shasta County
How to read this radar
Each axis: NRI risk rating (Very Low-Very High) on a 0-100 scale. Rounder = broad exposure; spiky = one or two hazards dominate.
Major Disaster share
49%
Mixed major share
NRI risk score
93
Relatively Moderate
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Shasta County?
FEMA's National Risk Index models a historical event count and an annualized frequency for each hazard type. Most hazards are expressed as modeled occurrences per year; FEMA expresses drought and heat-wave frequency as event-days per year. These modeled frequencies are not forecasts.
| Hazard | NRI Risk Rating | Recurrence |
|---|---|---|
| Wildfire | Relatively High | roughly once every 114 years |
| Earthquake | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 43 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively High | an average of 1 time per year |
| Volcanic Activity | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 455 years |
| Landslide | Relatively Moderate | an average of 6.4 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Moderate | 5 modeled event-days per year |
| Drought | Relatively Moderate | 77 modeled event-days per year |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Moderate | an average of 21 times per year |
| Lightning | Relatively Moderate | an average of 14 times per year |
| Avalanche | Very Low | roughly once every 100 years |
| Hail | Very Low | roughly once every 10 years |
| Tornado | Very Low | roughly once every 15 years |
| Strong Wind | Very Low | roughly once every 66 years |
| Cold Wave | Very Low | roughly once every 6,128,217 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Fire 22
Severe Storm 7
Flood 7
Biological 2
Hurricane 1
Coastal Storm 1
Drought 1
What Fire declarations mean here
Fire is the most frequent declaration type on Shasta County's record, 54% of its declarations. Wildfire is the one hazard here with its own dedicated federal instrument: the Fire Management Assistance Grant, which appears in this data as an FM record. An FMAG can be authorised while a fire is still burning, on a timescale of hours, because its purpose is to reimburse the cost of fighting a fire that threatens to become a major disaster.
That distinction matters when comparing counties. An FM declaration is not a presidential major disaster declaration and does not carry the same assistance programmes, so a fire-heavy county's total is not directly comparable with a hurricane-heavy county's total unless the declaration types are separated, which is why they are listed separately on this page.
Declaration counts describe past federal action. They are a record of what was declared, not a forecast of future hazard probability.
Declaration Types
What DR / EM / FM mean
FEMA categorizes declarations as Major Disasters (DR), Emergencies (EM), or Fire Management Assistance (FM).
Major Disaster - 20 48.8%
of all 41 declarations
Fire Management - 15 36.6%
of all 41 declarations
Emergency - 6 14.6%
of all 41 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 3 | |
| 2019 | 1 | |
| 2018 | 4 | |
| 2017 | 2 | |
| 2014 | 2 | |
| 2013 | 1 | |
| 2012 | 1 | |
| 2008 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 2 | |
| 2004 | 4 | |
| 2002 | 1 | |
Show 13 earlier declaration years
| 1999 | 1 | |
| 1997 | 1 | |
| 1995 | 2 | |
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1992 | 1 | |
| 1988 | 1 | |
| 1986 | 1 | |
| 1983 | 1 | |
| 1977 | 1 | |
| 1974 | 1 | |
| 1970 | 1 | |
| 1969 | 1 | |
| 1965 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 41 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 41 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4699 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2023-04-03 |
| 5417 | FAWN FIRE | FM | Fire | 2021-09-23 |
| 4569 | WILDFIRES | DR | Fire | 2020-10-16 |
| 5377 | ZOGG FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-09-28 |
| 4482 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-22 |
| 3428 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4431 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2019-05-01 |
| 4382 | WILDFIRES AND HIGH WINDS | DR | Fire | 2018-08-04 |
| 3398 | WILDFIRE | EM | Fire | 2018-07-28 |
| 5259 | CARR FIRE | FM | Fire | 2018-07-23 |
| 5245 | CREEK FIRE | FM | Fire | 2018-06-25 |
| 4308 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2017-04-01 |
| 4301 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2017-02-14 |
| 5069 | BALD FIRE | FM | Fire | 2014-08-03 |
| 5067 | EILER FIRE | FM | Fire | 2014-08-02 |
| 5050 | CLOVER FIRE | FM | Fire | 2013-09-10 |
| 5007 | PONDEROSA FIRE | FM | Fire | 2012-08-19 |
| 3287 | WILDFIRES | EM | Fire | 2008-06-28 |
| 2702 | CREEK FIRE | FM | Fire | 2007-06-29 |
| 1628 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, MUDSLIDES, AND LANDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2006-02-03 |
Show 21 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3248 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-13 |
| 2580 | MANTON FIRE | FM | Fire | 2005-08-26 |
| 2548 | CA-LAKE FIRE 08-14-2004 | FM | Fire | 2004-08-14 |
| 2547 | CA-FRENCH FIRE 08-14-2004 | FM | Fire | 2004-08-14 |
| 2544 | CA-BEAR FIRE-08-11-2004 | FM | Fire | 2004-08-11 |
| 2508 | CA-WHITMORE FIRE-10-28-2003 | FM | Fire | 2003-10-28 |
| 2461 | SQUIRREL FIRE | FM | Fire | 2002-09-04 |
| 3140 | CA-WILDFIRES-08/25/1999 | EM | Fire | 1999-09-01 |
| 1155 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, MUD AND LANDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 1997-01-04 |
| 1046 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING LANDSLIDES, MUD FLOW | DR | Severe Storm | 1995-03-12 |
| 1044 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, MUD FLOWS | DR | Severe Storm | 1995-01-10 |
| 979 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, MUD & LAND SLIDES, & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1993-02-03 |
| 958 | OLD GULCH & FOUNTAIN FIRES | DR | Fire | 1992-08-29 |
| 815 | WILDFIRES | DR | Fire | 1988-09-29 |
| 758 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1986-02-21 |
| 677 | COASTAL STORMS, FLOODS, SLIDES & TORNADOES | DR | Coastal Storm | 1983-02-09 |
| 3023 | DROUGHT | EM | Drought | 1977-01-20 |
| 412 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1974-01-25 |
| 283 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1970-02-16 |
| 253 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1969-01-26 |
| 183 | HEAVY RAINS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1964-12-24 |
Storm Events in California
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Shasta County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Wind | 4,070 | 13 | 27 | $228.2M |
| Flood | 3,132 | 26 | 25 | $985.1M |
| Heavy Snow | 1,814 | 6 | 0 | $1.6M |
| Dense Fog | 1,605 | 52 | 148 | $2.8M |
| Drought | 1,421 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
256
Total Paid
$4.9M
Avg Per Claim
$19.0K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Moderate
Score: 93.4/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Moderate
$135.5M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively Moderate
Community Resilience
Relatively Moderate
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Wildfire Relatively High
Earthquake Relatively Moderate
Riverine Flooding Relatively High
Volcanic Activity Relatively Moderate
Landslide Relatively Moderate
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Drought Relatively Moderate
Winter Weather Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively Moderate
Avalanche Very Low
Hail Very Low
Tornado Very Low
Strong Wind Very Low
Cold Wave Very Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) Ratings reflect relative scores among all US counties. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri
The model's sharpest exposure here: Wildfire
Wildfire risk in the model reflects fuel, terrain, weather and how much development sits in the wildland-urban interface. It is one of the few hazards where the exposure is materially changed by land management and building choices, not only by where the county happens to be.
For Shasta County the two measures on this page point the same way: Wildfire is the county's highest-rated modeled hazard (Relatively High), and Fire declarations also lead its federal record. Where the model and the declaration history agree, the reading is comparatively straightforward, the hazard is both expected and repeatedly realised.
National Risk Index ratings are modeled estimates of expected annual loss, not predictions of what will happen in any given year.
Data-matched county comparisons
Shasta County's closest FEMA peer: Natchitoches Parish, LA
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Shasta County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Shasta County shows 41 FEMA declarations, led by Fire.
Similar Major-disaster share
Shasta County: 20 of 41 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Shasta County: NRI composite 93.4 (Relatively Moderate).
How these peers are chosen
Cohort: Published U.S. county equivalents outside the source state or territory. Each metric keeps six ETL candidates; three unique destinations are shown after de-duplicating across axes. Declaration-volume ranking combines count and Major-disaster share and prefers a different leading incident type; Major-share ranks the Major fraction adjusted for volume; NRI ranks the modeled composite score only.
Retained FEMA snapshot feed for Shasta County - capture-dated entries only.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Shasta County's NFIP claims file (256 claims) and FEMA declaration history measure different federal records - this guide separates them from modeled NRI risk.
More PlainHazard guides
- Most disaster-prone counties - U.S. counties ranked by FEMA declaration totals.
- Understanding disaster data - declarations vs storm events vs NRI scores.
- Preparing for natural disasters - household checklist (not county-specific advice).
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common disaster type in Shasta County?
The most common disaster type in Shasta County is Fire, with 22 declarations. Other disaster types include Severe Storm (7), Flood (7), Biological (2).
How does Shasta County's FEMA declaration record compare with the California average?
FEMA lists 41 declaration records for Shasta County. That is 44% above the California county mean of 28.5. Its count is also 98% above the national county mean of 20.7. A larger declaration history records more federal actions; it is not a forecast of the county's next hazard.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Shasta County received?
Shasta County has received 20 major disaster declarations, representing 49% of all 41 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Shasta County filed?
Shasta County has 256 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $4.9M in payments, with an average of $19.0K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Shasta County?
No. In Shasta County, Wildfire has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $71.7M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Shasta County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Shasta County was 2004, with 4 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1965 to 2023.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Shasta County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Shasta County, California has an overall risk score of 93.4 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). On social vulnerability the county rates Relatively Moderate; on community resilience, Relatively Moderate. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $135.5M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Shasta County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Shasta County is Wildfire (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Earthquake (Relatively Moderate) and Riverine Flooding (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts wildfire here at roughly once every 114 years. The underlying methodology weighs historical event frequency against 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.
Flood insurance data comes from the FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA claims dataset.
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 Shasta County
Shasta County, CA has 41 federal declaration records, 44% more than the California county mean of 29; its history sits in PlainHazard's high activity band.
- Within this above-state-average declaration file, major disaster leads with 20 of 41 records; the category describes past federal action, not the next likely hazard. California overview
- The state benchmark and national rank point the same way: this count tops the California mean and the totals for 97% of 3,266 U.S. counties. Most-disaster rankings
- Use the data guide to separate this mid-volume insurance-claims file from declaration counts and modeled NRI risk. Disaster-data guide
An above-average declaration count records past federal responses; it does not predict the next event. Current warnings come from the National Weather Service and local emergency officials.
PlainHazard derives this profile from FEMA's Disaster Declarations Summaries and National Risk Index data. The declaration comparison covers 3,266 U.S. counties and county equivalents in this database, refreshed as of 2026-08-03. Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
All federal data sources used on this page
- FEMA OpenFEMA, Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 - all federally-declared disasters for this county. fema.gov/openfema/disaster-declarations
- FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) - per-county per-hazard risk ratings and expected annual loss. hazards.fema.gov/nri
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database - state-level storm/severe-weather event records, 2015-2025. ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents
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. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or national statistics report, the data & editorial changelog, or report a data error.