Gaston’s biggest natural hazard is earthquakes
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Gaston comes from earthquakes, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2017. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Gaston’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
Does Gaston flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2017
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gaston, from FEMA’s records.
Gaston isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Washington County.How exposed is Gaston?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 64% of U.S. communities, mostly from earthquakes and inland flooding.
Calmer than 295 of the 425 Oregon towns we cover.
Gaston is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
What Gaston faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Earthquakes
Inland flooding
1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Gaston
Disasters that paid out in Gaston itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Gaston) and its biggest flood years.
- 2007Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides6 households applied for aid$36K aid approved
Washington County has had 13 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.
Old photos of Gaston after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Gaston archive →Get ready for what Gaston actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, 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.
- Keep a shovel, a blanket and snacks in the car.
- Clear snow from furnace and dryer vents.
- Check on older neighbors when the power goes out.
- 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.
Most disasters here begin in December–January
The month each of Washington County’s 13 declared disasters began, since 1953.
What these numbers can and can’t tell you
- An average, not a forecast. FEMA’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 there, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings.
- Money that reached town. Flood claims are matched to Gaston’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Gaston.
- It follows property value. FEMA’s model weighs damage to buildings, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gaston.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.