Photo: Frank Schulenburg · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Palermo than in 91% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Palermo gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns, #368 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%), then wildfire (29%). Flood insurance has paid 13 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 Palermo 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
Earthquakes
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 Palermo’s grade
River and rain flooding is 59% of the building damage FEMA expects in Palermo, and Palermo’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 29%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D #368 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Palermo’s residents live in 3 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, Palermo has less expected damage per building than 57% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.5M a year in losses across Palermo: $2.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Palermo flood? Sometimes: 13 flood claims since 1995
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Palermo, from FEMA’s records: 5.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 62% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Pineapple Express - Southern1 claim · $6K
Palermo isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Butte County.The storms Palermo remembers
None of the 24 disasters declared for Butte County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Palermo itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20054 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Landslides, declared for Butte County
- 19953 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storms, Flooding Landslides, Mud Flow, declared for Butte County
- 19972 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Butte County has had 24 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 11 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Butte County, 2004–2024.
Old photos of Palermo after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Palermo archive →Palermo and its neighbors
Palermo is 4th of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Oroville | Cmore damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Oroville | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 16 |
| Oroville East | Dmore damage than 85% | river and rain flooding | 16 |
| Palermo | Dmore damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | 13 |
| Bangor | — | 597 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Palermo 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Palermo
Is Palermo at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Palermo has higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #368 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%) and wildfire (29%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Palermo flood?
Flood insurance has paid 13 claims in Palermo since 1995, $215K in all, or 5.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 62% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Pineapple Express - Southern (1).
Is Palermo 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 Butte County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Palermo?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Palermo’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 Palermo?
By flood claims, Pineapple Express - Southern: 1 paid, $6K.
Is Palermo at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (59%), and Palermo’s rate for it is higher than 89% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Palermo.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Palermo’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.