FEMA Records
7
Low volume
Nevada · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Churchill County, NV
7 FEMA disaster declarations (1997-2020), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Snowstorm.
- 7
- FEMA declarations
- 3
- Major disasters
- 47
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Snowstorm
- Top hazard
The verdict
Start with the local benchmark for Churchill County: 7 FEMA declaration records are 44% below the Nevada county mean, even though the count is higher than 4% of counties in the national registry. On FEMA's distinct National Risk Index model, which combines expected loss with vulnerability and resilience, the county ranks safer than 47%.
- Safer than 47%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 7
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 7
- NFIP flood insurance claims filed
FEMA's National Risk Index and its declaration registry are separate measures. This county's registry includes Major Disaster (DR) and Emergency (EM) records; an EM authorizes a narrower set of federal assistance than a DR.
How does Churchill County compare?
Churchill County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time
7 4th percentile higher than 4% of 3,266 counties
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 · 2026-08-03
Churchill County's FEMA Risk Index score
FEMA National Risk Index composite score vs. the Nevada county average
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Churchill County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $7.5M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Earthquake carries the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Moderate). EAL and risk score use different inputs; they need not agree.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025 release) - Expected Annual Loss vs composite risk rating by hazard.
What does Churchill County's hazard record show?
FEMA National Risk Index
FEMA's data shows an elevated National Risk Index composite of 47.3/100 for this county (Relatively Low rating). Expected Annual Loss comes in at Relatively Low (roughly $15.5M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability (Relatively Low) and community resilience (Very Low) both factor into how that raw exposure plays out on the ground. Among the 18 modeled hazards, Earthquake carries the county's highest rating, a mid-range Relatively Moderate. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at roughly once every 29 years here.
Declaration frequency
The state comparison is the clearest context for Churchill County's moderate federal record. Its 7 declarations sit 44% below the Nevada county mean, with 3 Major Disaster entries among them. 2 records concern Snowstorm, the file's most frequent incident type. Spread across 23 years, the registry rate is 0.3 per year. FEMA reports authorized programs separately from the DR, EM, and FM codes.
Reading the federal records together
This county has a small entry in FEMA's NFIP paid-claims table: 7 claims and $24.7K paid in total. PlainHazard calls 1-49 claims a light registry record, a label for this dataset rather than a finding that flood exposure is low. A short claims history can also reflect insurance take-up, the period covered, or losses that were never insured.
Start with the state benchmark: a Nevada county averages 12.4 federal declaration records, while Churchill County has 7. The gap is 44% below that mean. Fewer entries indicate a quieter history of recorded federal actions, not immunity from a hazard and not a prediction about what happens next.
33 /100
Historical Activity Index
Moderate historical activity
Churchill County, NV · PlainHazard-derived composite from federal records
This 0–100 index is an explicit PlainHazard composite from FEMA declaration history only on the county surface (this DB has no county-level NOAA damage row) . It is not FEMA's National Risk Index, not a forecast, and not a safety, insurance, or preparedness rating. Open the calculator · Methodology
FEMA Declarations (1953–present) Low
5/30
7 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (0.3x national county average)
County Disaster Density Moderate
7/25
7 declarations (0.6x state county average of 12)
Major Disaster Share Moderate
11/25
3 of 7 declarations are major disasters (43%)
Hazard Diversity High
10/20
4 different disaster types declared in Churchill County
Historical Declaration Activity
Activity Band
Moderate
vs. Nevada Avg
-44%
State avg: 12.4
vs. National Avg
-66%
National avg: 20.7
Avg Per Year
0.3
Over 23 years
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Churchill County
How to read this radar
Each axis: NRI risk rating (Very Low-Very High) on a 0-100 scale. Rounder = broad exposure; spiky = one or two hazards dominate.
Major Disaster share
43%
Mixed major share
NRI risk score
47
Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Churchill County?
FEMA's National Risk Index models a historical event count and an annualized frequency for each hazard type. Most hazards are expressed as modeled occurrences per year; FEMA expresses drought and heat-wave frequency as event-days per year. These modeled frequencies are not forecasts.
| Hazard | NRI Risk Rating | Recurrence |
|---|---|---|
| Earthquake | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 29 years |
| Volcanic Activity | Relatively Low | roughly once every 769 years |
| Drought | Relatively Moderate | 144 modeled event-days per year |
| Wildfire | Relatively Low | roughly once every 1,396 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 7.3 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Low | roughly once every 5 years |
| Avalanche | Very Low | roughly once every 100 years |
| Landslide | Very Low | an average of 5 times per year |
| Ice Storm | Very Low | roughly once every 67 years |
| Lightning | Relatively Low | an average of 18 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Very Low | 4.6 modeled event-days per year |
| Strong Wind | Very Low | roughly once every 8 years |
| Hail | Very Low | roughly once every 20 years |
| Cold Wave | Very Low | roughly once every 11,533 years |
| Tornado | Very Low | roughly once every 11 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Biological 2
Severe Storm 2
Snowstorm 2
Hurricane 1
What Snowstorm declarations mean here
Snowstorm is the most frequent declaration type on Churchill County's record, 29% of its declarations. Snow-related declarations work on a narrower basis than most other hazards: they are generally issued to reimburse the cost of snow removal and emergency protective measures, rather than to repair destroyed property.
The qualifying test is unusual too. FEMA assesses snowfall against record levels for the affected area, so the same storm total can qualify in a county where it is historically extreme and not qualify a few hundred miles north where it is an ordinary winter. A low snowstorm declaration count is therefore not evidence of mild winters.
Declaration counts describe past federal action. They are a record of what was declared, not a forecast of future hazard probability.
Declaration Types
What DR / EM / FM mean
FEMA categorizes declarations as Major Disasters (DR), Emergencies (EM), or Fire Management Assistance (FM).
Emergency - 4 57.1%
of all 7 declarations
Major Disaster - 3 42.9%
of all 7 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2017 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 3 | |
| 1997 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 7 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 7 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4523 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-04-04 |
| 3443 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4307 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2017-03-27 |
| 3243 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-13 |
| 3204 | SNOW | EM | Snowstorm | 2005-02-23 |
| 3202 | RECORD AND/OR NEAR RECORD SNOW | EM | Snowstorm | 2005-02-17 |
| 1153 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, MUD AND LANDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 1997-01-03 |
Storm Events in Nevada
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Churchill County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Wind | 1,647 | 0 | 2 | $10.4M |
| Heavy Snow | 926 | 0 | 0 | $123.0K |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 463 | 3 | 0 | $8.7M |
| Flash Flood | 315 | 7 | 2 | $36.7M |
| Excessive Heat | 252 | 376 | 17 | $0 |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
7
Total Paid
$24.7K
Avg Per Claim
$3.5K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 47.3/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$15.5M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively Low
Community Resilience
Very Low
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Earthquake Relatively Moderate
Volcanic Activity Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Moderate
Wildfire Relatively Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Riverine Flooding Relatively Low
Avalanche Very Low
Landslide Very Low
Ice Storm Very Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Heat Wave Very Low
Strong Wind Very Low
Hail Very Low
Cold Wave Very Low
Tornado Very Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) Ratings reflect relative scores among all US counties. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri
The model's sharpest exposure here: Earthquake
Earthquake is the model's clearest example of a hazard with no season and no warning. Its expected loss is driven less by how often shaking occurs than by how much of the building stock predates modern seismic codes, so exposure can be high in places where nothing has happened for a long time.
Worth noting for Churchill County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Earthquake carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively Moderate), while the county's declaration history is led by Snowstorm. That is not a contradiction, the two measure genuinely different things. Declarations record federal ACTION, which requires damage costly enough to exceed state and local capacity; the Risk Index models EXPECTED annual loss across all 18 hazards whether or not any declaration ever followed. A hazard can be the county's largest modeled exposure and never once have driven a declaration.
National Risk Index ratings are modeled estimates of expected annual loss, not predictions of what will happen in any given year.
Data-matched county comparisons
Churchill County's closest FEMA peer: Iron County, MI
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Churchill County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Churchill County shows 7 FEMA declarations, led by Snowstorm.
Similar Major-disaster share
Churchill County: 3 of 7 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Churchill County: NRI composite 47.3 (Relatively Low).
How these peers are chosen
Cohort: Published U.S. county equivalents outside the source state or territory. Each metric keeps six ETL candidates; three unique destinations are shown after de-duplicating across axes. Declaration-volume ranking combines count and Major-disaster share and prefers a different leading incident type; Major-share ranks the Major fraction adjusted for volume; NRI ranks the modeled composite score only.
Retained FEMA snapshot feed for Churchill County - capture-dated entries only.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
FEMA's National Risk Index flags Earthquake as the top modeled exposure here (Relatively Moderate); the guide explains how that model differs from declaration counts.
More PlainHazard guides
- Most disaster-prone counties - U.S. counties ranked by FEMA declaration totals.
- Understanding disaster data - declarations vs storm events vs NRI scores.
- Preparing for natural disasters - household checklist (not county-specific advice).
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common disaster type in Churchill County?
The most common disaster type in Churchill County is Snowstorm, with 2 declarations. Other disaster types include Biological (2), Severe Storm (2), Hurricane (1).
How does Churchill County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Nevada average?
The typical Nevada county has 12.4 FEMA declaration records; Churchill County has 7, or 44% fewer. Against the national county mean of 20.7, this county's total is 66% lower. The comparison is historical and says nothing about the probability of a future event.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Churchill County received?
Churchill County has received 3 major disaster declarations, representing 43% of all 7 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Churchill County filed?
Churchill County has 7 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $24.7K in payments, with an average of $3.5K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Churchill County?
No. In Churchill County, Earthquake has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Moderate), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $7.5M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Churchill County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Churchill County was 2005, with 3 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1997 to 2020.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Churchill County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Churchill County, Nevada has an overall risk score of 47.3 out of 100 (Relatively Low). On social vulnerability the county rates Relatively Low; on community resilience, Very Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $15.5M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Churchill County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Churchill County as of the latest release is Earthquake (risk rating: Relatively Moderate). Other significant hazards include Volcanic Activity (Relatively Low) and Drought (Relatively Moderate). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts earthquake here at roughly once every 29 years. The underlying methodology weighs historical event frequency against exposed assets and community vulnerability.
Data Sources & Methodology
Disaster declaration data comes from the FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 API, which includes all federally declared disasters, emergencies, and fire management assistance grants.
Storm event data is sourced from the NOAA Storm Events Database (2015-2025), which tracks significant weather events including thunderstorms, tornadoes, floods, and winter storms.
Flood insurance data comes from the FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA claims dataset.
This data is provided for informational purposes only. FEMA disaster declarations represent federal response actions and may not capture all local emergencies or weather events.
What this means for Churchill County
Against a Nevada county mean of 12 declarations, Churchill County, NV records 7, or 44% fewer. PlainHazard classifies that historical total as moderate activity.
- Emergency is the largest group (4 of 7) in a declaration history that remains below its state benchmark; frequency here is not a forecast. Nevada overview
- Nationally the county exceeds 4% of recorded county totals, but its own Nevada benchmark is higher. The ranking keeps those two contexts separate. Most-disaster rankings
- A short NFIP claims file cannot establish low flood exposure; the data guide explains the limits of each federal measure. Disaster-data guide
A below-average federal record is not a safety guarantee. Use National Weather Service alerts and local emergency-management notices for present conditions, not this historical comparison.
PlainHazard derives this profile from FEMA's Disaster Declarations Summaries and National Risk Index data. The declaration comparison covers 3,266 U.S. counties and county equivalents in this database, refreshed as of 2026-08-03. Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
All federal data sources used on this page
- FEMA OpenFEMA, Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 - all federally-declared disasters for this county. fema.gov/openfema/disaster-declarations
- FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) - per-county per-hazard risk ratings and expected annual loss. hazards.fema.gov/nri
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database - state-level storm/severe-weather event records, 2015-2025. ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents
Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainHazard Editorial
Verify with FEMA → · Verify with FEMA NRI → · Verify with NOAA →
Every figure on PlainHazard is rendered directly from FEMA federal disaster data, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or national statistics report, the data & editorial changelog, or report a data error.