Photo: Meronim · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Gearhart than in 90% of U.S. towns, led by earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gearhart gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (38%), then tsunamis (32%). Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1996.
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 Gearhart faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
Tsunamis
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 Gearhart’s grade
Earthquakes are 38% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gearhart, and Gearhart’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts. Tsunamis add 32%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D higher expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Gearhart’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $9.8M a year in losses across Gearhart: $2.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Gearhart flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1996
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gearhart, from FEMA’s records: 2.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 55% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Gearhart isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Clatsop County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Gearhart
Disasters that paid out in Gearhart itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Gearhart), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2007Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides56 households applied for aid$27K aid approved$63K to the City of Gearhart for repairs
Clatsop County has had 15 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.
Old photos of Gearhart after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Gearhart archive →Gearhart and its neighbors
Gearhart 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gearhart | Dmore damage than 90% | earthquakes | 4 |
| Seaside | D−more damage than 96% | tsunamis | 18 |
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 Gearhart 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.
- Strong shaking or a sudden drop in the sea means head for high ground now.
- Learn the tsunami route signs near the shore.
- Stay away until officials say it’s safe.
- 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 Gearhart
Is Gearhart at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gearhart has higher expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (38%) and tsunamis (32%). 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.
Does Gearhart flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Gearhart since 1996, $62K in all, or 2.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 55% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Gearhart 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 Clatsop County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 4.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Gearhart?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Gearhart’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 Gearhart?
By FEMA money that reached Gearhart, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2007): 56 households applied for aid, $27K approved, and $63K to the City of Gearhart for repairs.
Is Gearhart at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (38%), and Gearhart’s rate for it is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gearhart.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Gearhart’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.