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Cathedral Rock - Sedona AZ-1Photo: Terrydarc · CC BY-SA 3.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Sedona · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Sedona faces more hazard damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sedona gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, #74 of 140 in Arizona. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%), then wildfire (25%). Flood insurance has paid 36 claims here since 1993.

River and rain flooding 72%Wildfire 25%Earthquakes 2%

Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded

more than 80%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#74 of 140 in Arizona
Hazard risk
C−#74 of 140
in Arizona · higher than 80% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
72% of expected building damage
Flood claims
36
paid since 1993 · $1.1M
Flooded more than once
12
properties · 1 “severe repetitive loss”
Flood insurance
10% off
Community discount (class 8)

What stands out about Sedona’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

10% off flood insuranceFlood-proofing work earns Sedona residents a discount through FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 8).Wildfire: the top 2% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for wildfire here ranks in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts; it is 24.6% of the damage it expects.FEMA-funded flood-proofing4 buildings floodproofed with FEMA grants.Remembers 20049 flood claims were paid for 2004 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Sedona faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

River and rain flooding

72%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 7 times a year in the area

Wildfire

25%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Hail Tornadoes Landslides Strong wind Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Lightning Avalanches top 1% Volcanic activity
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesTsunamis
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts avalanches at 8% of Sedona’s expected losses. Avalanches do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Sedona’s grade

River and rain flooding is 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Sedona, and Sedona’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 25%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Sedona sits
Sedona
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− #74 of 140 in Arizona; higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Sedona’s residents live in 6 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding72%Wildfire25%Everything else4%

The typical Arizona town has higher expected damage than 78% of U.S. towns; within the state, Sedona has more expected damage per building than 53% of Arizona towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $8.8M a year in losses across Sedona: $7.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Sedona covers 6 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Sedona flood? Sometimes: 36 flood claims since 1993

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Sedona, from FEMA’s records: 5.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 62% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1993: 4 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 3 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 2 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 1 claim2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 9 claims2005: 4 claims2006: 1 claim2007: 1 claim2008: 0 claims2009: 6 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 2 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 1 claim2017: 2 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims199320042009
19932026
36
paid claims since 1993
$1.1M
paid to owners
12
homes flooded more than once
$29K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
Community discount10% off flood insurance

Sedona is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 8) for its flood-proofing work.

Insurance rates: Yavapai County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
4buildings floodproofed
Disasters

The storms Sedona remembers

None of the 10 disasters declared for Yavapai County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Sedona itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 20049 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Yavapai County
  2. 20096 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  3. 19934 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding, declared for Yavapai County
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in SedonaYavapai County only

Yavapai County has had 10 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Also 13 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Yavapai County, 2002–2022.

Were you here?

Old photos of Sedona after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Sedona archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Sedona faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
  • Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
  • Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Wildfire
  • Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
  • Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
  • Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
  • Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
  • Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
  • Sedona residents get 10% off flood insurance.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Sedona

Is Sedona at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sedona has higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #74 of 140 in Arizona. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%) and wildfire (25%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Sedona flood?

Flood insurance has paid 36 claims in Sedona since 1993, $1.1M in all, or 5.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 62% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 12 properties have flooded more than once.

Is Sedona in a flood zone?

Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Yavapai County, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Sedona?

Sedona is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 8), which takes 10% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

Is Sedona at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Sedona’s rate for it is higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Sedona.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Sedona’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.