BlockEl Centro, California
21 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1915 and the latest in 1989. It stands in the El Centro census division. It lies in ZIP code area 92243. The Survey maps it on the El Centro quadrangle. 44,322 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 39 feet above sea level.
Then and now
1915 to 1989The same ground, surveyed 74 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.
On record in El Centro
Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.
On the National Register 1 record
- US Post Office-El Centro Mainlisted 1985
Population over time
3 figuresEl Centro grew from 1,618 to 44,322 between 1910 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1910 | 1,618 | |
| 2010 | 42,598 | |
| 2020 | 44,322 | +1,724 (+4%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
13 surveys from 21 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1915 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:125000
- 1940 USGS Brawley quadrangle1:62500
- 1942 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:250000, 2 printings
- 1943 USGS Brawley quadrangle1:62500
- 1954 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:250000
- 1955 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:250000
- 1957 USGS Brawley quadrangle1:62500
- 1957 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:24000, 5 printings
- 1958 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1961 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:250000
- 1964 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:250000
- 1976 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:24000
- 1989 USGS El Centro quadrangle1:100000
Fires near this place
11 since 2006Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 11 fires within 5 miles of El Centro between 2006 and 2017, burning about 177 acres in total. None started naturally. 2 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 2 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 2 |
| Smoking | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 August 2006 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 20 acres | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 6 June 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 6.0 acres | San Diego Unit | not named |
| 25 June 2010 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 70 acres | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 8 May 2009 | Arson/incendiarism | 5.0 acres | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 30 May 2008 | Arson/incendiarism | 70 acres | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 28 May 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 1.0 acres | San Diego Unit | not named |
| 26 May 2010 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 2.0 acres | California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection | not named |
| 17 March 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | San Diego Unit | not named |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Mines and quarries near this place
2 within 5 milesRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 2 workings within 5 miles of El Centro: 1 occurrence, 1 producer. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Clay, Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Where | Site | Commodity | Status | Recorded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lucky Construction Pit | Sand and Gravel, Construction | Producer | ||
| Simons Brick Company | Clay | Occurrence | Sedimentary |
Storms near this place
18 since 1998Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names El Centro in 18 storm reports between 1998 and 2025: 11 thunderstorm wind, 4 flash flood, 2 hail, 1 lightning. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2007 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | $20,000 | Power poles were reported down in Imperial, and winds gusted to 53 mph at El Centro NAS. |
| August 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | $20,000 | Strong winds, heavy rain and small hail accompanied storms that moved through the El Centro area. The winds blew down four power poles in south El Centro and blew out store front windows. |
| September 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | $12,000 | Semi-truck blown over on Interstate 8 near the intersection with Highway 111 just east of El Centro. Wind gusts were estimated at 60-65 mph. No injuries reported. |
| October 2022 | Flash Flood | El Centro | $10,000 | Significant flooding was reported in the El Centro Regional Medical Center. There was 18 inches of flowing water in the parking lot, with the water entering the facility and affecting the emergency room as well as the radiology department. No injuries were reported. |
| October 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | $10,000 | Several downed trees were reported across El Centro, with some of the trees falling onto roofs of home. Winds were estimated between 55-60 mph. Timing estimated from radar. No injuries were reported. |
| October 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | $5,000 | Image of a large uprooted tree that fell onto a home, resulting in roof damage, in the area of Lenrey Avenue and South 5th Street in El Centro. Winds were estimated between 55-60 mph. Timing estimated from radar. No injuries were reported. |
| September 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | $5,000 | Sheriffs office reported two power poles down at Aten Road and route 86. |
| October 2022 | Flash Flood | El Centro | - | Heavy flooding reported on the on and off ramp of South 4th street and I-8 in El Centro. No damages or injuries were reported. |
| September 2022 | Flash Flood | El Centro | - | North Imperial Avenue between Adams Avenue and East Main Street in El Centro was closed due to flooding. No damages or injuries were reported. |
| August 2014 | Hail | El Centro | - | Thunderstorms developed across portions of south central Imperial county during the early afternoon hours on August 21st and they affected the communities of El Centro and Imperial. The stronger storms produced large hail in addition to gusty microburst winds. According to the California Highway Patrol, a strong thunderstorm in El Centro produced dime-sized hail, or hail with a diameter of 0.75 inches. The large hail did not appear to cause damage. |
| August 2010 | Hail | El Centro | - | Hail to ping pong ball size was reported by the public in El Centro. |
| October 2005 | Lightning | El Centro | - | A three-alarm haystack fire in rural El Centro was sparked by lightning late Sunday night, forcing four families from their homes. The storm system also dropped nearly an inch of rain on Imperial County along with reports of hail in Imperial and Holtville. Power was knocked out in Imperial for about 2 hours. |
| February 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | - | Thunderstorms moved through much of central Imperial County producing small hail and high winds. El Centro received half-inch diameter hail that covered the ground in places. |
| August 2000 | Flash Flood | El Centro | - | Heavy rain resulted in some road closures with flooded streets in town. |
| July 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | - | Peak wind gust of 59 mph reported at El Centro Naval Air Station. Nearby wind damage included power lines and poles down and a roof blown off a house in Brawley. |
| July 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | - | Trees and power lines down. Brief heavy rain and lightning also struck most of the city. |
| July 1999 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | - | About 50 power poles knocked down in parts of the county, leaving at least 2,000 customers without power. |
| August 1998 | Thunderstorm Wind | El Centro | - | Much of Imperial Co affected by high winds, heavy rain. |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on El Centro | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q495369 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1656501. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.