Natural hazards · Hanford

Hanford, CA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Hanford comes from earthquakes, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2016.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Hanford?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Hanford to be higher than in 60% of U.S. communities, mostly from earthquakes and inland flooding.

Earthquakes42%Inland flooding40%Heat waves16%Everything else2%

By hazard

What Hanford faces

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

Earthquakes

42% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 87% of U.S. places

Inland flooding

40% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 58% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Heat waves

16% of expected damage

Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Recorded about 11 times a year in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailWinter weatherWildfireStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesIce stormsCold wavesLandslidesAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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 Hanford flood?

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

1paid claims since 2016

$2Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20162026

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Kings County.

Disasters that hit Hanford

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into HanfordDeclared for Kings County only

Kings 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. Hanford covers 9 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Hanford’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Hanford. 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 Hanford total about $15.5M 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.