Photo: Hey Paul from State College, PA, USA · CC BY 2.0On FEMA’s figures, Shandon faces more hazard damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Shandon gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (55%), then earthquakes (31%). 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 Shandon 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 Shandon’s grade
River and rain flooding is 55% of the building damage FEMA expects in Shandon, and Shandon’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts. Earthquakes add 31%, at a rate in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
D− higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Shandon’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.9M a year in losses across Shandon: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Shandon flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Shandon. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Shandon 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 Luis Obispo County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Shandon
Disasters that paid out in Shandon itself (aid to households or repair grants to Shandon), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2023Severe Winter Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides3 households applied for aid$300 aid approved
- 2003Earthquake10 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
San Luis Obispo County has had 23 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 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in San Luis Obispo County, 2016–2016.
Old photos of Shandon after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Shandon archive →Get ready for what Shandon 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 Shandon
Is Shandon at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Shandon has higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (55%) and earthquakes (31%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Shandon 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 Luis Obispo County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Shandon?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Shandon’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 Shandon?
By FEMA money that reached Shandon, Earthquake (2003): 10 households applied for aid, $7K approved.
Is Shandon at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (55%), and Shandon’s rate for it is in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Shandon.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Shandon’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.