Photo: Johnwayne Stroud · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Calimesa than almost anywhere in the U.S., led by wildfire
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Calimesa gets a D− for hazard risk: among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns, #805 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is wildfire (41%), then earthquakes (31%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Calimesa faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Wildfire
Earthquakes
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 Calimesa’s grade
Wildfire is 41% of the building damage FEMA expects in Calimesa, and Calimesa’s rate of wildfire damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Earthquakes add 31%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
D− #805 of 847 in California; among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).
Calimesa’s 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, Calimesa has more expected damage per building than 95% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $12.1M a year in losses across Calimesa: $10.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Calimesa flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Calimesa. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Calimesa isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Riverside County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Calimesa
Disasters that paid out in Calimesa itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Calimesa), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2019Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$170K to the City of Calimesa for repairs
- 2010Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Debris and Mud Flows$5K to the City of Calimesa for repairs
- 2004Severe Storms, Flooding, Debris Flows, and Mudslides$67K to the City of Calimesa for repairs
Riverside County has had 33 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 30 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Riverside County, 2003–2026.
Old photos of Calimesa after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Calimesa archive →Calimesa and its neighbors
Calimesa is 3rd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Calimesa 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Calimesa
Is Calimesa at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Calimesa has among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #805 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is wildfire (41%) and earthquakes (31%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Calimesa 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 Riverside County, 16% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Calimesa?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Calimesa’s 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 Calimesa?
By FEMA money that reached Calimesa, Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2019): $170K to the City of Calimesa for repairs.
Is Calimesa at risk from wildfire?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (41%), and Calimesa’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Calimesa.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Calimesa’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.