Photo: Amin Eshaiker · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Calipatria faces more hazard damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Calipatria gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, #734 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (53%), then river and rain flooding (46%). 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 Calipatria faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
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 Calipatria’s grade
Earthquakes are 53% of the building damage FEMA expects in Calipatria, and Calipatria’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. River and rain flooding adds 46%, at a rate in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
D− #734 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Calipatria’s residents live in 2 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, Calipatria has more expected damage per building than 87% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.7M a year in losses across Calipatria: $4.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Calipatria flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Calipatria. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Calipatria isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Imperial County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Calipatria
Disasters that paid out in Calipatria itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Calipatria), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2010Earthquake$120K to the City of Calipatria for repairs
Imperial County has had 12 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.
Old photos of Calipatria after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Calipatria archive →Get ready for what Calipatria faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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 Calipatria
Is Calipatria at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Calipatria has higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #734 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (53%) and river and rain flooding (46%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Calipatria 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 Imperial County, 4% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Calipatria?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Calipatria’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 Calipatria?
By FEMA money that reached Calipatria, Earthquake (2010): $120K to the City of Calipatria for repairs.
Is Calipatria at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (53%), and Calipatria’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Calipatria.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Calipatria’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.