Photo: Brittneal · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Shafter faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Shafter gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns, #79 of 847 in California. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (56%), then river and rain flooding (42%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Shafter 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 Shafter’s grade
Earthquakes are 56% of the building damage FEMA expects in Shafter, and Shafter’s rate of earthquakes damage is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 42% (lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts).
C+ #79 of 847 in California; higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Shafter’s residents live in 5 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, Shafter has less expected damage per building than 91% of California towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $6.9M a year in losses across Shafter: $4.9M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Shafter flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Shafter. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Shafter isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Kern County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Shafter
Disasters that paid out in Shafter itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Shafter), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2023Severe Winter Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides13 households applied for aid$900 aid approved
- 2010Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Debris and Mud Flows$61K to the City of Shafter for repairs
Kern County has had 22 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 15 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Kern County, 2002–2024.
Old photos of Shafter after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Shafter archive →Get ready for what Shafter 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Shafter
Is Shafter at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Shafter has higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #79 of 847 in California. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (56%) and river and rain flooding (42%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Shafter 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 Kern County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Shafter?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Shafter’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 Shafter?
By FEMA money that reached Shafter, Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, and Debris and Mud Flows (2010): $61K to the City of Shafter for repairs.
Is Shafter at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (56%), and Shafter’s rate for it is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Shafter.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Shafter’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.