Natural disaster risk in El Dorado County, California
California · population 190,978 · FIPS 06017
Overall: relatively moderate risk
El Dorado County has a composite risk score of 91.4 out of 100 — higher than 91% of US counties. It ranks 37 of 58 in California (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are wildfire, avalanche, winter weather.
Drought now: Yes: D1 Moderate Drought, 8 weeks
Yes. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 3.18% of El Dorado County is in D1 Moderate Drought. Some of it has been at D1 or worse for 8 weeks in a row.
Drought in El Dorado County: the last 52 weeks · droughtmonitor.unl.edu
The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC.
Risk, loss, vulnerability and resilience
| Measure | Rating and score |
|---|---|
| Overall risk Expected annual loss, adjusted for social vulnerability and community resilience. |
Relatively moderate 91.4 |
| Expected annual loss About $124.3 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards. |
Relatively moderate 92.7 |
| Social vulnerability Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover. |
Very low 18.1 |
| Community resilience Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover. |
Relatively high 67 |
Risk by hazard
FEMA's risk rating for each of 18 natural hazards in El Dorado County, highest first. "Not applicable" means the hazard is not modelled here.
| Hazard | Risk rating and score |
|---|---|
| Wildfire | Relatively high 99 |
| Avalanche | Relatively high 85 |
| Winter weather | Relatively high 85 |
| Landslide | Relatively moderate 96 |
| Earthquake | Relatively moderate 91 |
| Inland (riverine) flooding | Relatively moderate 91 |
| Drought | Relatively moderate 77 |
| Lightning | Relatively moderate 68 |
| Heat wave | Relatively low 67 |
| Strong wind | Relatively low 18 |
| Volcanic activity | Very low 60 |
| Hail | Very low 18 |
| Tornado | Very low 13 |
| Coastal flooding | Not applicable |
| Cold wave | No rating |
| Hurricane | Not applicable |
| Ice storm | Not applicable |
| Tsunami | Not applicable |
FEMA disaster declarations for El Dorado County
Federal declarations that designated El Dorado County, since 1 Jan 2024 (the period this site keeps from OpenFEMA). Older declarations are in FEMA's own dataset.
Not since 1 Jan 2024: no FEMA disaster declaration in the records this site read names El Dorado County.
All FEMA declarations in California, with estimated apply-by dates · Open FEMA deadlines
This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s). Dataset: Disaster Declarations Summaries - v2.
How to read these ratings
- Ratings run in five steps: very low, relatively low, relatively moderate, relatively high and very high. They compare a county with every other US county; they are not a measure of danger on their own.
- Scores run from 0 to 100 and are national percentiles. The bar shows the score: a score of 80 means a higher value than 80% of US counties.
- Overall risk combines the expected annual loss with social vulnerability and community resilience.
- Expected annual loss is the average yearly loss to buildings, people and agriculture the model expects from all 18 hazards.
- Social vulnerability describes how hard it may be for people to prepare for and recover from a disaster. Higher is worse.
- Community resilience describes a community's ability to prepare, adapt and recover. Higher is better.
- "Not applicable" means FEMA does not model that hazard there (for example, hurricanes far inland).
About this data
Source: FEMA National Risk Index, version 1.20, released December 2025, published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (US public domain). About the National Risk Index. The index is a model of relative risk built from historical hazard records, what is exposed and community factors. It is not a forecast, it does not describe any single property, and it is not insurance or financial advice. For decisions about a specific address, check FEMA's flood maps and your local emergency management office.
Questions
What is the natural disaster risk in El Dorado County, California?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in El Dorado County as relatively moderate, with a score of 91.4 out of 100 (higher than 91% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.
What are the biggest natural hazards in El Dorado County?
The hazards rated highest for El Dorado County are wildfire (relatively high), avalanche (relatively high), winter weather (relatively high).
What is the flood risk in El Dorado County?
FEMA rates inland (river and rain) flooding risk in El Dorado County as relatively moderate. For a specific property, check the FEMA flood map and your local floodplain office.
Has El Dorado County had a FEMA disaster declaration?
Not since 1 Jan 2024: no FEMA disaster declaration in the records this site read names El Dorado County.
Is El Dorado County in a drought?
Yes. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 3.18% of El Dorado County is in D1 Moderate Drought. Some of it has been at D1 or worse for 8 weeks in a row.
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