Natural hazards · Seacliff

Seacliff, CA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Seacliff comes from earthquakes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 54 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Seacliff?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Seacliff to be higher than in 86% of U.S. communities, mostly from earthquakes and inland flooding.

Earthquakes75%Inland flooding20%Everything else5%

By hazard

What Seacliff faces

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

Earthquakes

75% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 97% of U.S. places

Inland flooding

20% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 45% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

Coastal floodingTornadoesHailWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningTsunamis

Not a risk here

HurricanesIce stormsCold wavesDroughtAvalanchesVolcanic 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 Seacliff flood?

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

54paid claims since 1978

$980Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

California Atmospheric River: 7 claims, $652K
Pineapple Express - Southern: 3 claims, $49K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Santa Cruz County.

Disasters that hit Seacliff

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into SeacliffDeclared for Santa Cruz County only

Santa Cruz County has had 29 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

Around Seacliff

Seacliff and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Aptosmostly earthquakesVery high

Capitolamostly earthquakesVery high

Seacliffmostly earthquakesVery high

Rio del Marmostly earthquakesVery high

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. Seacliff covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Seacliff’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Seacliff. 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 Seacliff total about $2.6M 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.