Natural hazards · College

College, CA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in College comes from drought, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 8 claims here since 1983.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is College?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in College to be higher than in 76% of U.S. communities, mostly from drought.

Drought80%Earthquakes9%Inland flooding8%Everything else3%

By hazard

What College faces

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

Drought

80% of expected damage

Recorded about 84 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. places

Inland flooding

8% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 67% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningVolcanic activity

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesIce stormsCold wavesAvalanchesTsunamis

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

Flood insurance claims

Does College flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in College, from FEMA’s records.

8paid claims since 1983

$193Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19832026

Biggest named events

Pineapple Express - Southern: 1 claim, $7K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. College isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Colusa County.

Disasters that hit College

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Colusa County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching College itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into CollegeDeclared for Colusa County only

Colusa County has had 16 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. College covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to College’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to College. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across College total about $11.8M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); 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. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.