Photo: Traveler100 · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Seal Beach than in 97% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seal Beach gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns, #655 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (63%), then earthquakes (34%). Flood insurance has paid 107 claims here since 1983.
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 Seal Beach’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Seal Beach 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 Seal Beach’s grade
River and rain flooding is 63% of the building damage FEMA expects in Seal Beach, and Seal Beach’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts. Earthquakes add 34%, at a rate in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
D− #655 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Seal Beach’s residents live in 10 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, Seal Beach has more expected damage per building than 77% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $31.3M a year in losses across Seal Beach: $27.3M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Seal Beach flood? Yes: 107 flood claims since 1983
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Seal Beach, from FEMA’s records: 7.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 68% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Pineapple Express - Southern11 claims · $90K
- The February California Atmospheric River3 claims · $398K
- The California Atmospheric River2 claims · $137K
Seal Beach isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Orange County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Seal Beach
Disasters that paid out in Seal Beach itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Seal Beach), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides$28K to the City of Seal Beach for repairs4 flood claims paid that year
- 2010Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Debris and Mud Flows$13K to the City of Seal Beach for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2004Severe Storms, Flooding, Debris Flows, and Mudslides$35K to the City of Seal Beach for repairs17 flood claims paid that year
Orange County has had 27 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 Orange County, 2002–2022.
Old photos of Seal Beach after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Seal Beach archive →Seal Beach and its neighbors
Seal Beach is 7th of the 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Huntington Beach | Dmore damage than 87% | earthquakes | 490 |
| Westminster | Dmore damage than 88% | earthquakes | 82 |
| Garden Grove | Dmore damage than 90% | earthquakes | 60 |
| Los Alamitos | Dmore damage than 94% | earthquakes | 2 |
| Long Beach | D−more damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | 195 |
| Rossmoor | D−more damage than 96% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Seal Beach | D−more damage than 97% | river and rain flooding | 107 |
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 Seal Beach 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 Seal Beach
Is Seal Beach at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seal Beach has higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk, #655 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (63%) and earthquakes (34%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Seal Beach flood?
Flood insurance has paid 107 claims in Seal Beach since 1983, $1.8M in all, or 7.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 68% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 13 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Pineapple Express - Southern (11).
Is Seal Beach 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 Orange County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Seal Beach?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Seal Beach’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 Seal Beach?
By FEMA money that reached Seal Beach, Severe Storms, Flooding, Debris Flows, and Mudslides (2004): $35K to the City of Seal Beach for repairs. By flood claims, Pineapple Express - Southern: 11 paid, $90K.
Is Seal Beach at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (63%), and Seal Beach’s rate for it is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Seal Beach.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Seal Beach’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.