Photo: LokiBoone · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Dunsmuir than almost anywhere in the U.S., mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Dunsmuir gets a D− for hazard risk: among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%), then wildfire (21%). Flood insurance has paid 12 claims here since 1995.
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 Dunsmuir 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
Wildfire
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 Dunsmuir’s grade
River and rain flooding is 74% of the building damage FEMA expects in Dunsmuir, and Dunsmuir’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 21%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D− among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Dunsmuir’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.6M a year in losses across Dunsmuir: $3.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Dunsmuir flood? Sometimes: 12 flood claims since 1995
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Dunsmuir, from FEMA’s records: 11.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Dunsmuir isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Siskiyou County.The storms Dunsmuir remembers
None of the 14 disasters declared for Siskiyou County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Dunsmuir itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19978 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19963 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Mud and Landslides, declared for Siskiyou County
- 19951 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storms, Flooding Landslides, Mud Flow, declared for Siskiyou County
Siskiyou County has had 14 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 6 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Siskiyou County, 2014–2022.
Old photos of Dunsmuir after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Dunsmuir archive →Get ready for what Dunsmuir faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Dunsmuir
Is Dunsmuir at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Dunsmuir has among the highest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%) and wildfire (21%). 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 Dunsmuir flood?
Flood insurance has paid 12 claims in Dunsmuir since 1995, $110K in all, or 11.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Dunsmuir 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 Siskiyou County, 9% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Dunsmuir?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Dunsmuir’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Dunsmuir at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (74%), and Dunsmuir’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Dunsmuir.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Dunsmuir’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.