States › California › 1985
California, 1985
The year's recorded storm events, federal disaster declarations and flood insurance claims.
NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders.
Events by hazard
Includes events recorded by forecast zone. The state's yearly total for 1985 was 8 against 12 in 1984.
Counties with the most recorded events
| County | Events in 1985 |
|---|---|
| San Bernardino County | 4 |
| San Diego County | 1 |
| San Benito County | 1 |
| Lassen County | 1 |
| Riverside County | 1 |
Notable events
| Date | County | Event type | Magnitude | Property damage | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Jul 1985 | San Bernardino | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 mph | — | — | 4 |
| 4 Feb 1985 | San Diego | Tornado | F0 | $250,000 | — | — |
| 11 Mar 1985 | San Benito | Tornado | F2 | $2,500 | — | — |
| 18 Sep 1985 | Riverside | Tornado | F0 | — | — | — |
Up to 40 events with deaths, injuries, damage of $50,000 or more, or a tornado rating, ranked by deaths, injuries and damage.
Federal disaster declarations in 1985
| Declared | Number | Type | Incident | Title | Counties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Jul 1985 | DR-739 | Major disaster | Fire | Grass, Wildlands, & Forest Fires | 6 |
| 11 Jul 1985 | FM-2055 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Hidden Valley Lake Fire | 0 |
| 11 Jul 1985 | FM-2054 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Lexington Fire | 0 |
Flood insurance claims with a 1985 date of loss
118 NFIP claims, 38 of them paid, for $231,035.
Sources: NOAA NCEI Storm Events through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2 (1 Oct 2026); OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 (8 Sep 2026). Built 1 Oct 2026.