Photo: Wulfnoth of English Wikipedia · CC BY 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Santa Rosa than in 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Santa Rosa gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, #726 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (51%), then earthquakes (48%). Flood insurance has paid 30 claims here since 1981.
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 stands out about Santa Rosa’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Santa Rosa 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
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 Santa Rosa’s grade
River and rain flooding is 51% of the building damage FEMA expects in Santa Rosa, and Santa Rosa’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts. Earthquakes add 48%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
D− #726 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Santa Rosa’s residents live in 46 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, Santa Rosa has more expected damage per building than 86% of California towns.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Santa Rosa has higher expected damage per building than 98% (#394 of 400). Because it is so big, its total expected yearly loss, $211M, is the 39th largest of those 400.
Does Santa Rosa flood? Sometimes: 30 flood claims since 1981
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Santa Rosa, from FEMA’s records: 0.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 92% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Pineapple Express - Southern2 claims · $57K
- The California Atmospheric River2 claims · $20K
Santa Rosa isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Sonoma County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Santa Rosa
Disasters that paid out in Santa Rosa itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Santa Rosa), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2022Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$230K to the City of Santa Rosa for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2020Wildfires653 households applied for aid$587K aid approved
- 2020Wildfires1,011 households applied for aid$52K aid approved
- 2017Wildfires11,826 households applied for aid$9.5M aid approved$27.7M to the City of Santa Rosa for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
- 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$67K to the City of Santa Rosa for repairs
- 2005Severe Storms, Flooding, Mudslides, and Landslides72 households applied for aid$78K aid approved$719K to the City of Santa Rosa for repairs7 flood claims paid that year
Sonoma 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 8 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Sonoma County, 2004–2020.
Old photos of Santa Rosa after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Santa Rosa archive →Santa Rosa and its neighbors
Santa Rosa is 3rd of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sebastopol | D−more damage than 95% | earthquakes | 50 |
| Larkfield-Wikiup | D−more damage than 97% | earthquakes | 3 |
| Santa Rosa | D−more damage than 98% | river and rain flooding | 30 |
| Fulton | — | 453 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 Santa Rosa 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.
- 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 Santa Rosa
Is Santa Rosa at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Santa Rosa has higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #726 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (51%) and earthquakes (48%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Santa Rosa flood?
Flood insurance has paid 30 claims in Santa Rosa since 1981, $556K in all, or 0.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 92% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 3 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Pineapple Express - Southern (2).
Is Santa Rosa 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 Sonoma County, 31% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Santa Rosa?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Santa Rosa’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 Santa Rosa?
By FEMA money that reached Santa Rosa, Wildfires (2017): 11,826 households applied for aid, $9.5M approved, and $27.7M to the City of Santa Rosa for repairs. By flood claims, Pineapple Express - Southern: 2 paid, $57K.
Is Santa Rosa at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (51%), and Santa Rosa’s rate for it is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Santa Rosa.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Santa Rosa’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.