Photo: Chris Krylov · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Angels than in 85% of U.S. towns, mostly from wildfire
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Angels gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns, #221 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is wildfire (58%), then river and rain flooding (38%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 1980.
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
What Angels faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Wildfire
River and rain flooding
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.
What’s behind Angels’ grade
Wildfire is 58% of the building damage FEMA expects in Angels, and Angels’ rate of wildfire damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 38% (higher than 53% of U.S. census tracts).
C− #221 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Angels’ residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical California town has higher expected damage than 92% of U.S. towns; within the state, Angels has less expected damage per building than 74% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.0M a year in losses across Angels: $2.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Angels flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Angels, from FEMA’s records: 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 69% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Angels isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Calaveras County.The storms Angels remembers
None of the 15 disasters declared for Calaveras County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Angels itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19801 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19821 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19861 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Calaveras County
Calaveras County has had 15 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 5 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Calaveras County, 2004–2026.
Old photos of Angels after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Angels archive →Get ready for what Angels faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Angels
Is Angels at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Angels has higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #221 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is wildfire (58%) and river and rain flooding (38%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Angels flood?
Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Angels since 1980, $14K in all, or 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 69% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Angels 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 Calaveras County, 37% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Angels?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Angels’ flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Angels at risk from wildfire?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (58%), and Angels’ rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Angels.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Angels’ 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.