Photo: Ellin Beltz · Public domainStorms, floods and disasters in Manila
Manila isn’t graded for hazard risk: Manila has 985 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 15 claims here since 1986.
What Manila 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
Tsunamis
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 Manila flood? Sometimes: 15 flood claims since 1986
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Manila, from FEMA’s records.
Manila isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Humboldt County.The storms Manila remembers
None of the 23 disasters declared for Humboldt County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Manila itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19953 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storms, Flooding Landslides, Mud Flow, declared for Humboldt County
- 19963 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Mud and Landslides, declared for Humboldt County
- 19862 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Humboldt County
Humboldt County has had 23 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Manila after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Manila archive →Get ready for what Manila 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.
- Strong shaking or a sudden drop in the sea means head for high ground now.
- Learn the tsunami route signs near the shore.
- Stay away until officials say it’s safe.
- 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 Manila
Does Manila flood?
Flood insurance has paid 15 claims in Manila since 1986, $272K in all.
Is Manila 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 Humboldt County, 10% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Manila?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Manila’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Manila.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Manila’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.