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Biggs Elementary School-L1003950Photo: Frank Schulenburg · CC BY-SA 4.0
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Biggs · FEMA

FEMA puts Biggs’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 63% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Biggs gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (61%), then river and rain flooding (36%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1998.

Earthquakes 61%River and rain flooding 36%Wildfire 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 63%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C+
in California · higher than 63% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Earthquakes
61% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 1998 · $6K
Disasters paid out here
1
of 24 declared for Butte County
By hazard

What Biggs faces

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

Earthquakes

61%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts

River and rain flooding

36%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 79% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Wildfire Tornadoes Hail Strong wind Winter storms Heat waves Landslides Lightning Volcanic activity
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesIce stormsCold wavesAvalanchesTsunamis
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts drought at 83% of Biggs’ expected losses. Drought does 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 Biggs’ grade

Earthquakes are 61% of the building damage FEMA expects in Biggs, and Biggs’ rate of earthquakes damage is higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 36% (lower than 79% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Biggs sits
Biggs
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ higher expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Biggs’ residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
Earthquakes61%River and rain flooding36%Everything else3%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.9M a year in losses across Biggs: $644K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Biggs’ 1,964 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Richvale CDP (234 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Biggs flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1998

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Biggs, from FEMA’s records: 1.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 74% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1998: 1 claim1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims1998
19982026
Biggest named events
  • The Pineapple Express - Southern1 claim · $6K
1
paid claims since 1998
$6K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$6K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Biggs isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Butte County.
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Biggs

Disasters that paid out in Biggs itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Biggs), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2017Wildfires10 households applied for aid$500 aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BiggsButte County only

Butte County has had 24 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 11 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Butte County, 2004–2024.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Biggs archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Biggs faces

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

Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
More from Ready.gov ↗
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 ↗
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.
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 Biggs

Is Biggs at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Biggs has higher expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (61%) and river and rain flooding (36%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Biggs flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Biggs since 1998, $6K in all, or 1.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 74% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Pineapple Express - Southern (1).

Is Biggs 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 Butte County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Biggs?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Biggs’ flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

What was the biggest storm in Biggs?

By FEMA money that reached Biggs, Wildfires (2017): 10 households applied for aid, $500 approved. By flood claims, Pineapple Express - Southern: 1 paid, $6K.

Is Biggs at risk from earthquakes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (61%), and Biggs’ rate for it is higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Biggs.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Biggs’ 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.