Which category is described as catastrophic damage?

• A. Category 1
• B. Category 3
• C. Category 4
• D. Category 2

Answer: (C)

Understanding how damage levels map to categories helps you read this quickly. In this rating system, each category represents increasing severity, and the descriptor attached to the highest category signals the most extreme impact. The fourth category is defined to produce catastrophic damage—extensive destruction that can cripple structures, disrupt essential services, and create widespread risk to life and safety. That level of destruction is what the term “catastrophic damage” is meant to describe, making the fourth category the best match for this description. Lower categories describe progressively less severe impact, so they wouldn’t use the term catastrophic.