Strong Wind Risk in California
All California counties ranked by FEMA National Risk Index strong wind score
Strong Wind risk — damaging straight-line winds outside of tornadoes and hurricanes — is rated for 58 of 58 California counties in FEMA's National Risk Index. San Bernardino County carries the state's highest strong wind score at 97.0, with $4M in expected annual strong wind losses.
1 California county is rated High or Very High for strong wind, and expected annual losses from strong wind total roughly $13M statewide. The full ranking below links to each county's complete 18-hazard risk profile.
County Rankings — Strong Wind
| # | County | Strong Wind Score | Rating | Ann. Freq. | Ann. Loss |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Bernardino County | High | 0.18 / yr | $4M | |
| 2 | Los Angeles County | Medium | 0.15 / yr | $971K | |
| 3 | Imperial County | Medium | 0.28 / yr | $401K | |
| 4 | Riverside County | Medium | 0.23 / yr | $614K | |
| 5 | Orange County | Medium | 0.17 / yr | $653K | |
| 6 | San Diego County | Medium | 0.19 / yr | $642K | |
| 7 | Kern County | Low | 0.06 / yr | $399K | |
| 8 | Ventura County | Low | 0.07 / yr | $493K | |
| 9 | San Joaquin County | Low | 0.05 / yr | $384K | |
| 10 | Contra Costa County | Low | 0.04 / yr | $398K | |
| 11 | Stanislaus County | Low | 0.04 / yr | $286K | |
| 12 | Tulare County | Low | 0.04 / yr | $209K | |
| 13 | Placer County | Low | 0.07 / yr | $245K | |
| 14 | San Mateo County | Low | 0.03 / yr | $222K | |
| 15 | Merced County | Low | 0.04 / yr | $151K | |
| 16 | Madera County | Low | 0.05 / yr | $130K | |
| 17 | El Dorado County | Low | 0.07 / yr | $198K | |
| 18 | Solano County | Low | 0.04 / yr | $172K | |
| 19 | Fresno County | Very Low | 0.04 / yr | $110K | |
| 20 | Tuolumne County | Very Low | 0.05 / yr | $104K | |
| 21 | Nevada County | Very Low | 0.07 / yr | $108K | |
| 22 | Sonoma County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $119K | |
| 23 | Santa Barbara County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $89K | |
| 24 | Butte County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $81K | |
| 25 | Monterey County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $75K | |
| 26 | Alameda County | Very Low | 0.04 / yr | $94K | |
| 27 | Marin County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $96K | |
| 28 | Kings County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $65K | |
| 29 | Mariposa County | Very Low | 0.05 / yr | $50K | |
| 30 | San Francisco County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $74K | |
| 31 | Mono County | Very Low | 0.04 / yr | $80K | |
| 32 | Calaveras County | Very Low | 0.04 / yr | $61K | |
| 33 | Santa Clara County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $81K | |
| 34 | Yolo County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $70K | |
| 35 | Napa County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $61K | |
| 36 | Shasta County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $57K | |
| 37 | Sacramento County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $56K | |
| 38 | Santa Cruz County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $53K | |
| 39 | Sutter County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $38K | |
| 40 | Plumas County | Very Low | 0.07 / yr | $29K | |
| 41 | Siskiyou County | Very Low | 0.04 / yr | $28K | |
| 42 | Lassen County | Very Low | 0.05 / yr | $31K | |
| 43 | Amador County | Very Low | 0.04 / yr | $36K | |
| 44 | San Luis Obispo County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $36K | |
| 45 | Yuba County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $33K | |
| 46 | Tehama County | Very Low | 0.01 / yr | $21K | |
| 47 | Colusa County | Very Low | 0.02 / yr | $23K | |
| 48 | Humboldt County | Very Low | 0.01 / yr | $18K | |
| 49 | Del Norte County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $20K | |
| 50 | Alpine County | Very Low | 0.10 / yr | $20K | |
| 51 | Glenn County | Very Low | 0.01 / yr | $17K | |
| 52 | Sierra County | Very Low | 0.11 / yr | $10K | |
| 53 | Inyo County | Very Low | 0.06 / yr | $6K | |
| 54 | Lake County | Very Low | 0.01 / yr | $6K | |
| 55 | San Benito County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $9K | |
| 56 | Trinity County | Very Low | 0.01 / yr | $4K | |
| 57 | Modoc County | Very Low | 0.03 / yr | $4K | |
| 58 | Mendocino County | Very Low | 0.00 / yr | $2K |
58 California counties with measurable strong wind risk. See the national strong wind ranking or all California counties by overall risk.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which California county has the highest strong wind risk?
San Bernardino County has the highest FEMA strong wind risk score in California at 97.0 (High), with $4M in expected annual losses and about 0.18 events per year.
How many California counties face significant strong wind risk?
58 California counties record measurable strong wind risk in FEMA's National Risk Index; 1 of them are rated High or Very High.