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Natural hazards · Sumas

Sumas, WA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Sumas comes from avalanches, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 303 claims here since 1982. 6 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Sumas?

81
Very high
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Sumas to be higher than in 81% of U.S. communities, mostly from avalanches and earthquakes.

Avalanches61%Earthquakes20%Inland flooding17%Everything else3%
By hazard

What Sumas faces

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

Avalanches

61% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Earthquakes

20% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 91% of U.S. places

Inland flooding

17% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningDroughtVolcanic activity

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingHurricanesHailTsunamis
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 Sumas flood?

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

303paid claims since 1982
$22.4Mpaid to owners
72homes flooded more than once
19822026

Biggest named events

  • 2025-12-AtmosphericRiver: 119 claims, $10.6M

Homes that flooded again and again

Each house = 2 homes. ■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (4) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
🏷️ 15% off flood insurance. Sumas is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 7) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Whatcom County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

27homes raised above flood level
3flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters that hit Sumas

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Sumas itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the City of Sumas.

Brought FEMA money into SumasDeclared for Whatcom County only
2025

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides

214 households applied for aid $1.8M aid approved
2021

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides

422 households applied for aid $2.1M aid approved $5.3M to the City of Sumas for repairs
2020

Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides

$293K to the City of Sumas for repairs
2018

Severe Winter Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides, Tornado

$36K to the City of Sumas for repairs
2017

Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, Landslides, Mudslides

$783K to the City of Sumas for repairs
2009

Severe Winter Storm, Landslides, Mudslides, and Flooding

6 households applied for aid $5K aid approved
Whatcom County has had 23 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. Sumas is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Sumas’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Sumas. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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