FEMADR-4856-CAMajor disasterDeclared January 8, 2025
DR-4856-CA: California Wildfires and Straight-Line Winds
FEMA made a major disaster declaration for California (DR-4856-CA) on January 8, 2025 for the incident of January 7, 2025 to January 31, 2025; it covers 1 designated area. FEMA had approved $184.8 million for 35,168 households through the Individuals and Households Program (as of October 16, 2026) and obligated $37.0 million in Public Assistance (as of September 4, 2026).
The declaration
- Declaration
- DR-4856-CA (also written FEMA-4856-DR)
- Type
- Major disaster declaration
- State
- California
- Incident
- Fire: Wildfires and Straight-Line Winds
- Incident period
- January 7, 2025 to January 31, 2025
- Declared
- January 8, 2025
- Programs declared
- Individuals and Households, Public Assistance, Hazard Mitigation
- FEMA region
- 9
- Place in the year
- the only major disaster declaration for California in 2025
- Status
- open (not yet closed out by FEMA)
- Registration deadline (individual help)
- March 31, 2025
Source: FEMA, OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). Data as of October 16, 2026.
Which areas are covered, and for what?
| Designated area | Individuals and Households | Public Assistance | Hazard Mitigation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles (County) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
An area can be added to a declaration after the first day, or have a program added: this table is FEMA's current list.
Source: FEMA, OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). Data as of October 16, 2026.
How much has FEMA approved?
35,168households approved for help (IHP)
$184.8 millionIndividuals and Households Program approved
$83.1 millionof it for housing
$101.6 millionof it for other needs
$37.0 millionPublic Assistance obligated
Individual assistance figures as of October 16, 2026, public assistance as of September 4, 2026. FEMA updates both as applications are decided.
Source: FEMA, OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2); FEMA, OpenFEMA FEMA Web Disaster Summaries (v1). Data as of October 16, 2026.
FEMA's page for this declaration
FEMA's own page for this declaration is fema.gov/disaster/4856. AreaZine is not FEMA and cannot answer questions about an application. Registration for individual help closed on March 31, 2025.