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Burney Falls 504x402Photo: Public domain · Public domain
D−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Burney · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Burney faces more hazard damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Burney gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns, #568 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (75%), then wildfire (16%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 75%Wildfire 16%Earthquakes 10%

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 95%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#568 of 847 in California
Hazard risk
D−#568 of 847
in California · higher than 95% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
75% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
0
of 23 declared for Shasta County
By hazard

What Burney 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

75%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Wildfire

16%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts

Earthquakes

10%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Volcanic activity top 0% Tornadoes Hail Strong wind Winter storms Heat waves Landslides Lightning Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingHurricanesIce stormsCold wavesTsunamis

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 Burney’s grade

River and rain flooding is 75% of the building damage FEMA expects in Burney, and Burney’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 16%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Burney sits
Burney
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D− #568 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding75%Wildfire16%Earthquakes10%

The typical California town has higher expected damage than 92% of U.S. towns; within the state, Burney has more expected damage per building than 67% of California towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.2M a year in losses across Burney: $3.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Burney’s 3,000 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Johnson Park CDP (686 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 Burney flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Burney. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Shasta County.
Disasters

The storms Burney remembers

None of the 23 disasters declared for Shasta County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Burney itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BurneyShasta County only

Shasta County has had 23 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 15 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Shasta County, 2002–2021.

Be ready

Get ready for what Burney 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 ↗
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 ↗
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 Burney

Is Burney at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Burney has higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #568 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (75%) and wildfire (16%). 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.

Is Burney 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 Shasta County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Burney?

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

Is Burney at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (75%), and Burney’s rate for it is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Burney.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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