Badger Mountain Lookout · Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA puts Sunnyslope’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 81% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sunnyslope gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns, #168 of 285 in Washington. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (64%), then wildfire (30%). 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 Sunnyslope 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 Sunnyslope’s grade
River and rain flooding is 64% of the building damage FEMA expects in Sunnyslope, and Sunnyslope’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 30%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #168 of 285 in Washington; higher expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Sunnyslope’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Washington town has higher expected damage than 76% of U.S. towns; within the state, Sunnyslope has more expected damage per building than 59% of Washington towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $6.3M a year in losses across Sunnyslope: $2.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Sunnyslope flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Sunnyslope. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Sunnyslope isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Chelan County.The storms Sunnyslope remembers
None of the 19 disasters declared for Chelan County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Sunnyslope itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Chelan County has had 19 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 Chelan County, 2001–2025.
Sunnyslope and its neighbors
Sunnyslope 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunnyslope | C−more damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Wenatchee | Dmore damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 19 |
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 Sunnyslope 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 Sunnyslope
Is Sunnyslope at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sunnyslope has higher expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #168 of 285 in Washington. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (64%) and wildfire (30%). 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.
Is Sunnyslope 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 Chelan County, 1.2% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Sunnyslope?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Sunnyslope’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Sunnyslope at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (64%), and Sunnyslope’s rate for it is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Sunnyslope.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Sunnyslope’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.