Photo: Dicklyon · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Mountain View faces more hazard damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mountain View gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns, #413 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (64%), then river and rain flooding (34%). Flood insurance has paid 5 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 Mountain View 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 Mountain View’s grade
Earthquakes are 64% of the building damage FEMA expects in Mountain View, and Mountain View’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 2%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
D #413 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Mountain View’s residents live in 22 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, Mountain View has less expected damage per building than 51% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $72.2M a year in losses across Mountain View: $57.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Mountain View flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 1995
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Mountain View, from FEMA’s records: 0.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 99% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Pineapple Express - Southern4 claims · $8K
Mountain View is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Santa Clara County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Mountain View
Disasters that paid out in Mountain View itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Mountain View), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides$374K to the City of Mountain View for repairs
Santa Clara 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.
Also 3 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Santa Clara County, 2002–2020.
Old photos of Mountain View after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Mountain View archive →Mountain View and its neighbors
Mountain View has the lowest expected damage per building of the 4 graded towns here. 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 Mountain View 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.
- Mountain View residents get 15% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Mountain View
Is Mountain View at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mountain View has higher expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #413 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (64%) and river and rain flooding (34%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Mountain View flood?
Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Mountain View since 1995, $11K in all, or 0.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 99% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Pineapple Express - Southern (4).
Is Mountain View 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 Santa Clara County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Mountain View?
Mountain View is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7), which takes 15% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Mountain View?
By FEMA money that reached Mountain View, Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides (2017): $374K to the City of Mountain View for repairs. By flood claims, Pineapple Express - Southern: 4 paid, $8K.
Is Mountain View at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (64%), and Mountain View’s rate for it is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Mountain View.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Mountain View’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.