Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Redlands faces less hazard damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Redlands gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns, #4 of 159 in Colorado. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%), then wildfire (11%). Flood insurance has paid 4 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 Redlands 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
Wildfire
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 Redlands’ grade
River and rain flooding is 83% of the building damage FEMA expects in Redlands, and Redlands’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 69% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 11%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
A #4 of 159 in Colorado; lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Redlands’ residents live in 4 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Colorado town has higher expected damage than 56% of U.S. towns; within the state, Redlands has less expected damage per building than 98% of Colorado towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.6M a year in losses across Redlands: $1.3M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Redlands flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1983
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Redlands, from FEMA’s records: 1.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 77% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Redlands isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Mesa County.The storms Redlands remembers
None of the 3 disasters declared for Mesa County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Redlands itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19834 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Mesa County has had 3 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 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Mesa County, 2002–2020.
Old photos of Redlands after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Redlands archive →Redlands and its neighbors
Redlands has the lowest expected damage per building of the 3 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Redlands | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Grand Junction | Aless damage than 87% | river and rain flooding | 7 |
| Fruita | B+less damage than 73% | 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 Redlands 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.
- 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.
- 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 Redlands
Is Redlands at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Redlands has lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #4 of 159 in Colorado. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%) and wildfire (11%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Redlands flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Redlands since 1983, $16K in all, or 1.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 77% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Redlands 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 Mesa County, 22% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Redlands?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Redlands’ flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Redlands at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (83%), and Redlands’ rate for it is lower than 69% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Redlands.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Redlands’ 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.