How many disasters are declared in California?
Updates published monthly
On average, 13 disasters are declared per year. This figure is based on the most recent five full years of Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) data.
As of August, there have been 5 disaster declarations in California in 2025. In 2024, there were 15 declarations.
A disaster declaration is more than just recognizing an event—it's a formal request for federal aid when state, local, or tribal resources are overwhelmed. The president approves these declarations when they determine that federal support is necessary.
Declarations vary due to the type and severity of disasters, whether the president approves requests for federal assistance, and other factors.
5
disasters have been declared so far in California in 2025
15
disasters have been declared in California in 2024
13
disasters have been declared yearly on average (2020–2024)
The primary two disaster declarations are major disaster and emergency.
- A major disaster declaration applies to hurricanes, tornadoes, snowstorms, floods, earthquakes, wildfires, volcanic eruptions, landslides, mudslides, droughts, explosions, and other severe natural events. These typically cause widespread damage requiring long-term recovery efforts.
- An emergency declaration is issued when the president determines federal assistance is needed to protect lives, property, or public health and safety. Aid is capped at $5 million and is for urgent crises. These can include public health emergencies (such as COVID-19), terrorist attacks, power outages, or events related to natural disasters.
A third type of declaration, fire management, applies to managing and suppressing either a single large blaze or multiple smaller fires. While fires can also be part of major disasters or emergencies, fire management is a separate category because the declaration process differs: instead of the longer timelines for other declarations, these expedited decisions are usually made within a few hours.
The president must approve all declarations. The federal aid available depends on what kind of disaster is declared. In most cases, governors request these declarations, though tribal nations may also submit requests independently.
California declared 70 disasters in the last 5 years.
Number of disaster declarations by disaster incident type, January 1980–August 2025
In the last 5 years, fires have been 53 out of the state's 70 declarations, making them the most common declaration in that time frame.
In 2020, COVID-19 accounted for 2 biological emergency declarations that year in California. States can have multiple declarations for a single disaster event: both by the state and native American tribes, and for disaster and emergency declarations.
Since 1980, fires have accounted for 358 (80.73%) of all disaster declarations in California, the highest of any disaster type. In that same time frame, there have been 358 total declarations across 10 disaster categories.
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Since 1980, there have been 391 disaster declarations in California.
| 1. | August 08, 2025 | Canyon Fire |
| 2. | January 08, 2025 | Hurst Fire |
| 3. | January 08, 2025 | Eaton Fire |
| 4. | January 08, 2025 | Wildfires And Straight-line Winds |
| 5. | January 07, 2025 | Palisades Fire |
| 6. | December 10, 2024 | Franklin Fire |
| 7. | November 06, 2024 | Mountain Fire |
| 8. | September 11, 2024 | Airport Fire |
| 9. | September 11, 2024 | Bridge Fire |
| 10. | September 08, 2024 | Boyles Fire |
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
