Photo: Jeffery Hayes · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Seattle than in 83% of U.S. towns, mostly from earthquakes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seattle gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns, #189 of 285 in Washington. Most of that expected damage is earthquakes (72%), then river and rain flooding (28%). Flood insurance has paid 156 claims here since 1978.
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 stands out about Seattle’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Seattle 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 Seattle’s grade
Earthquakes are 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Seattle, and Seattle’s rate of earthquakes damage is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts. Next is river and rain flooding at 28% (lower than 70% of U.S. census tracts).
C− #189 of 285 in Washington; higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Seattle’s residents live in 179 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Washington town has higher expected damage than 76% of U.S. towns; within the state, Seattle has more expected damage per building than 66% of Washington towns.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Seattle has higher expected damage per building than 76% (#304 of 400). Because it is so big, its total expected yearly loss, $530M, is the 9th largest of those 400.
Does Seattle flood? Yes: 156 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Seattle, from FEMA’s records: 0.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 92% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The Winter storm18 claims · $317K
- The Torrential rain1 claim · $68K
- The 2025-12-AtmosphericRiver1 claim · $8K
Seattle isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: King County.16 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Seattle
Disasters that paid out in Seattle itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Seattle), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2025Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides88 households applied for aid$235K aid approved3 flood claims paid that year
- 2024Severe Winter Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$58K to the City of Seattle for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2021Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$16.4M to the City of Seattle for repairs
- 2020Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$571K to the City of Seattle for repairs7 flood claims paid that year
- 2017Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides$1.1M to the City of Seattle for repairs5 flood claims paid that year
- 2015Wildfires and Mudslides$1.7M to the City of Seattle for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
Show all 16
- 2014Flooding and Mudslides$26K to the City of Seattle for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
- 2012Severe Winter Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$1.6M to the City of Seattle for repairs11 flood claims paid that year
- 2011Severe Winter Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$54K to the City of Seattle for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2009Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, Mudslides, and Flooding36 households applied for aid$38K aid approved$1.2M to the City of Seattle for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2008Severe Winter Storm and Record and Near Record Snow$1.2M to the City of Seattle for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides503 households applied for aid$926K aid approved$1.2M to the City of Seattle for repairs19 flood claims paid that year
- 2006Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, and Mudslides$7.0M to the City of Seattle for repairs
- 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides122 households applied for aid$169K aid approved$436K to the City of Seattle for repairs
- 2003Severe Storms and Flooding44 households applied for aid$51K aid approved$663K to the City of Seattle for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
- 2001Earthquake$4.4M to the City of Seattle for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
King County has had 30 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. 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 King County, 2022–2022.
Old photos of Seattle after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Seattle archive →Seattle and its neighbors
Seattle is 5th of the 11 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medina | C+more damage than 63% | earthquakes | 1 |
| Bainbridge Island | Cmore damage than 71% | earthquakes | 36 |
| Mercer Island | Cmore damage than 75% | earthquakes | 4 |
| Kirkland | C−more damage than 79% | earthquakes | 6 |
| Seattle | C−more damage than 83% | earthquakes | 156 |
| White Center | C−more damage than 84% | earthquakes | — |
| Burien | Dmore damage than 85% | earthquakes | 12 |
| Vashon | Dmore damage than 88% | earthquakes | 22 |
| Bryn Mawr-Skyway | Dmore damage than 89% | earthquakes | 2 |
| Boulevard Park | Dmore damage than 92% | earthquakes | — |
| Tukwila | D−more damage than 96% | earthquakes | 1 |
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 Seattle 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 Seattle
Is Seattle at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seattle has higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #189 of 285 in Washington. Most of the expected damage is earthquakes (72%) and river and rain flooding (28%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Seattle flood?
Flood insurance has paid 156 claims in Seattle since 1978, $4.7M in all, or 0.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 92% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 19 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Winter storm (18).
Is Seattle 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 King County, 44% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Seattle?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Seattle’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 Seattle?
By FEMA money that reached Seattle, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2021): $16.4M to the City of Seattle for repairs. By flood claims, Winter storm: 18 paid, $317K.
Is Seattle at risk from earthquakes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Seattle’s rate for it is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Seattle.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Seattle’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.