Photo: Sarah Stierch · CC BY 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Isleton
Isleton isn’t graded for hazard risk: Isleton has 522 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 14 claims here since 1980.
What Isleton 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.
Does Isleton flood? Sometimes: 14 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Isleton, from FEMA’s records.
Isleton isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Sacramento County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Isleton
Disasters that paid out in Isleton itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Isleton), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2022Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides24 households applied for aid$28K aid approved$1.1M to the City of Isleton for repairs
Sacramento County has had 19 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 Isleton after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Isleton archive →Get ready for what Isleton 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 Isleton
Does Isleton flood?
Flood insurance has paid 14 claims in Isleton since 1980, $467K in all. 1 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Isleton 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 Sacramento County, 81% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 9.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Isleton?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Isleton’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 Isleton?
By FEMA money that reached Isleton, Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2022): 24 households applied for aid, $28K approved, and $1.1M to the City of Isleton for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Isleton.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Isleton’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.