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C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Fobes Hill · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Fobes Hill than in 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fobes Hill gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, #165 of 285 in Washington. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (59%), then river and rain flooding (28%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2025.

Earthquakes 59%River and rain flooding 28%Coastal flooding 12%

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

more than 80%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#165 of 285 in Washington
Hazard risk
C−#165 of 285
in Washington · higher than 80% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Earthquakes
59% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 2025 · $32K
Flood claims per home
1 per 1,000
fewer than 78% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What Fobes Hill faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Earthquakes

59%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts

River and rain flooding

28%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 76% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 3 years in the area

Coastal flooding

12%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Ice storms Landslides Tsunamis top 1% Hail Strong wind Wildfire Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Lightning Volcanic activity top 3%
FEMA models no building damage here
HurricanesAvalanches

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Fobes Hill’s grade

Earthquakes are 59% of the building damage FEMA expects in Fobes Hill, and Fobes Hill’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 12%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Fobes Hill sits
Fobes Hill
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− #165 of 285 in Washington; higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Fobes Hill’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
Earthquakes59%River and rain flooding28%Coastal flooding12%

The typical Washington town has higher expected damage than 76% of U.S. towns; within the state, Fobes Hill has more expected damage per building than 58% of Washington towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.4M a year in losses across Fobes Hill: $1.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Fobes Hill covers 2 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Fobes Hill flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2025

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Fobes Hill, from FEMA’s records: 1.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 78% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2025: 1 claim2026: 0 claims2025
20252026
Biggest named events
  • The 2025-12-AtmosphericRiver1 claim · $32K
1
paid claims since 2025
$32K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$32K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Fobes Hill isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Snohomish County.
Disasters

The storms Fobes Hill remembers

None of the 31 disasters declared for Snohomish County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Fobes Hill itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 20251 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides, declared for Snohomish County
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Fobes HillSnohomish County only

Snohomish County has had 31 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 Snohomish County, 2022–2022.

Were you here?

Old photos of Fobes Hill after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Fobes Hill archive →
Next door

Fobes Hill and its neighbors

Fobes Hill is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Snohomish: hazard risk DBunk Foss: hazard risk CSnohomishBunk FossFobes Hill
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Bunk FossCmore damage than 74%river and rain flooding14
Fobes HillC−more damage than 80%earthquakes1
SnohomishDmore damage than 88%earthquakes46

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Fobes Hill faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
More from Ready.gov ↗
When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
When the tide surges
  • Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
  • Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
  • Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Fobes Hill

Is Fobes Hill at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fobes Hill has higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #165 of 285 in Washington. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (59%) and river and rain flooding (28%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Fobes Hill flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Fobes Hill since 2025, $32K in all, or 1.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 78% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from 2025-12-AtmosphericRiver (1).

Is Fobes Hill 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 Snohomish County, 27% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Fobes Hill?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Fobes Hill’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 Fobes Hill?

By flood claims, 2025-12-AtmosphericRiver: 1 paid, $32K.

Is Fobes Hill at risk from earthquakes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (59%), and Fobes Hill’s rate for it is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fobes Hill.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Fobes Hill’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.