FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Thermal than in 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Thermal gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (56%), then river and rain flooding (41%). 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 Thermal 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 Thermal’s grade
Earthquakes are 56% of the building damage FEMA expects in Thermal, and Thermal’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. River and rain flooding adds 41%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
D− higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Thermal’s residents live in 4 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.4M a year in losses across Thermal: $3.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Thermal flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Thermal. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Thermal isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Riverside County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Thermal
Disasters that paid out in Thermal itself (aid to households or repair grants to Thermal), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2004Severe Storms, Flooding, Debris Flows, and Mudslides2 households applied for aid$576 aid approved
Riverside County has had 33 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 30 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Riverside County, 2003–2026.
Old photos of Thermal after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Thermal archive →Thermal and its neighbors
Thermal has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thermal | D−more damage than 98% | earthquakes | 0 |
| Coachella | D−among the highest damage | river and rain flooding | — |
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 Thermal 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 Thermal
Is Thermal at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Thermal has higher expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (56%) and river and rain flooding (41%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Thermal 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 Riverside County, 16% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Thermal?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Thermal’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 Thermal?
By FEMA money that reached Thermal, Severe Storms, Flooding, Debris Flows, and Mudslides (2004): 2 households applied for aid, $576 approved.
Is Thermal at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (56%), and Thermal’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Thermal.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Thermal’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.