Edgemoor Farm Dairy Barn · Photo: Somewikistuff · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA puts Santee’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 91% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Santee gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns, #371 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%), then earthquakes (13%). Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 1993.
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 Santee 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
Wildfire
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 Santee’s grade
River and rain flooding is 78% of the building damage FEMA expects in Santee, and Santee’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 9%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
D #371 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Santee’s residents live in 17 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, Santee has less expected damage per building than 56% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $29.1M a year in losses across Santee: $27.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Santee flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 1993
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Santee, from FEMA’s records: 0.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 97% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Santee isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: San Diego County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Santee
Disasters that paid out in Santee itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Santee), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storm and Flooding35 households applied for aid$106K aid approved
- 2017Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides$202K to the City of Santee for repairs
- 2010Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Debris and Mud Flows$260K to the City of Santee for repairs
- 2007Wildfires, Flooding, Mud Flows, and Debris Flows20 households applied for aid$5K to the City of Santee for repairs
- 2005Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mud and Debris Flows$113K to the City of Santee for repairs
- 2004Severe Storms, Flooding, Debris Flows, and Mudslides11 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
Show all 7
- 2003Wildfires, Flooding, Mudflow and Debris Flow Directly Related T18 households applied for aid$16K aid approved$22K to the City of Santee for repairs
San Diego County has had 30 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 18 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in San Diego County, 2002–2018.
Old photos of Santee after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Santee archive →Santee and its neighbors
Santee is 5th of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego | Cmore damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 589 |
| El Cajon | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 26 |
| Bostonia | C−more damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Winter Gardens | Dmore damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | 20 |
| Santee | Dmore damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Eucalyptus Hills | D−more damage than 96% | wildfire | 14 |
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 Santee 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.
- 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.
- 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 Santee
Is Santee at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Santee has higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #371 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%) and earthquakes (13%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Santee flood?
Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Santee since 1993, $68K in all, or 0.2 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 97% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Santee 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 San Diego County, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Santee?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Santee’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 Santee?
By FEMA money that reached Santee, Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Debris and Mud Flows (2010): $260K to the City of Santee for repairs.
Is Santee at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (78%), and Santee’s rate for it is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Santee.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Santee’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.