PlainHazard

If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

The data below is historical (NOAA Storm Events / FEMA), not a live alert. For current warnings and evacuation orders, check the National Weather Service, Ready.gov, or FEMA.gov.

Florida · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index

Citrus County, FL

40 FEMA disaster declarations (1969-2025), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively High. Most common hazard: Hurricane.

40
FEMA declarations
23
Major disasters
95
NRI risk · Relatively High
Hurricane
Top hazard

The verdict

Citrus County has a nationally busy FEMA history: 40 declarations, more than 97% of counties in this registry. But the state comparison tempers that reading: the total is 1% below the Florida county mean. FEMA's separate National Risk Index places the county in the riskiest 5%; that score models loss and vulnerability rather than counting declarations.

Riskiest 5%
of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
Relatively High
FEMA National Risk Index rating
40
FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
7,076
NFIP flood insurance claims filed

FEMA's National Risk Index and its declaration registry are separate measures. This county's registry includes Fire Management Assistance (FM) records, which are not presidential disaster declarations, alongside Major Disaster (DR) and Emergency (EM) records.

View my watchlist

FEMA OpenFEMA declaration desk

County FIPS 12017 · Citrus County 40 declarations · rank 110/3,266

DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-HIGH · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-BELOW

  • DECL-HEAVY 40
  • MAJOR-MID 57%
  • RANK-UPPER #110
  • PHOTO-FINISH Essex
  • NRI-HIGH 95
  • ACT-HIGH High
  • TYPE-LEAD Hurricane
  • VS-ST-BELOW -1%

Nearest declaration peer: Essex, MA (0 declaration gap)

FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Florida state profile

Citrus County among high-volume declaration counties

FEMA declaration records among Citrus County and nearest peers by total count

declarations

What this shows Citrus County carries 40 FEMA declaration records, ranked 110 of 3,266 counties in this registry.

Source FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 As of 2026-08-25

Where Citrus County ranks in the national declaration registry

Citrus County vs. high-volume counties in this registry

FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Citrus County

40 Top 3% higher than 97% of 3,266 counties

This county 0 90 all U.S. counties FEMA tracks, bucketed by value

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 · 2026-08-25

Citrus County's FEMA Risk Index score

0/100100/100Florida avg76/10094.7/100
FEMA National Risk Index composite score vs. the Florida county average

What does Citrus County's hazard record show?

Reading the federal records together

FEMA's NFIP table contains a substantial paid-claim history for this county: 7,076 claims and $384.0M in payments. PlainHazard labels 500 or more claims a heavy registry record; that is a reporting bucket, not an official FEMA risk grade. The average paid claim was $54.3K. NFIP totals exclude uninsured flood losses and do not measure how many properties currently carry a policy.

Start with the state benchmark: a Florida county averages 40.4 federal declaration records, while Citrus County has 40. The gap is 1% 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.

FEMA National Risk Index

This county sits among the highest-risk counties nationally on FEMA's National Risk Index, a composite score of 94.7/100 (Relatively High). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Moderate (roughly $112.1M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability reads Very High and community resilience Very Low, both critical modifiers of realized harm here. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Hurricane stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Very High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at roughly once every 4 years here, based on 95 historical events on record.

73 /100

Historical Activity Index

High historical activity

Citrus County, FL · 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) Very High
29/30

40 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.9x national county average)

County Disaster Density Moderate
12/25

40 declarations (1.0x state county average of 40)

Major Disaster Share High
14/25

23 of 40 declarations are major disasters (57%)

Hazard Diversity Very High
18/20

7 different disaster types declared in Citrus County

FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Citrus County

Citrus County NRI risk profile 8-axis FEMA National Risk Index radar showing per-hazard scores for Earthquake 8, Flood 70, Hurricane 92, Tornado 48, Wildfire 48, Drought 8, Heat Wave 25, Winter Storm 25. The simple mean of these eight displayed scores is 41 of 100. Earthquake Flood Hurricane Tornado Wildfire Drought Heat Wave Winter Storm 41 8-hazard mean
Citrus County NRI risk profile FIPS 12017 · displayed-hazard mean 41/100
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.

FEMA Records

40

Very high volume

Major Disaster share

57%

Major-heavy

NRI risk score

95

Relatively High

Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release

How often does each hazard strike Citrus 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
Hurricane Very High roughly once every 4 years
Lightning Relatively High an average of 92 times per year
Coastal Flooding Relatively High an average of 3.7 times per year
Wildfire Relatively Moderate roughly once every 325 years
Tornado Relatively Moderate roughly once every 2 years
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate roughly once every 1 years
Heat Wave Relatively Low 2.7 modeled event-days per year
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate roughly once every 1 years
Cold Wave Relatively Low an average of 3.3 times per year
Earthquake Very Low roughly once every 2,179 years
Landslide Very Low roughly once every 15 years
Drought Very Low 18 modeled event-days per year
Hail Very Low an average of 1.7 times per year
Winter Weather Very Low roughly once every 305,765 years

Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release

Disaster Types

Hurricane 21
Severe Storm 6
Tropical Storm 5
Freezing 3
Biological 2
Fire 2
Tornado 1

What Hurricane declarations mean here

Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Citrus County's federal record, 53% of its declarations. Atlantic tropical systems run on a defined season, 1 June to 30 November, with most activity concentrated between August and October; Pacific and territorial basins run on their own calendars. A single named storm routinely produces one declaration number covering a long corridor of counties at once, well inland as well as on the coast, which is why an affected county's count can jump by several in one year without several separate events having occurred.

One practical distinction matters when reading these records: a tropical declaration usually bundles wind, storm surge and inland rainfall flooding under a single incident, but the insurance behind them is split. Wind damage falls to property insurers, while flood and surge damage is covered only under a separate National Flood Insurance Program policy. That is why a county can show heavy declaration activity and a comparatively small NFIP claims record, or the reverse.

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).

Major Disaster - 23 57.5%

of all 40 declarations

Emergency - 16 40.0%

of all 40 declarations

Fire Management - 1 2.5%

of all 40 declarations

FEMA Declarations Timeline

Year Declarations
2025 2
2024 4
2023 4
2022 2
2021 3
2020 2
2019 2
2017 3
2016 1
2012 1
2008 1
2005 1
2004 4
2003 1
2001 1
Show 7 earlier declaration years
2000 1
1998 2
1997 1
1993 1
1990 1
1977 1
1969 1

Disaster Declarations

How the 40 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.

Download these 40 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.

DR# Title Type Incident Date
4834 HURRICANE MILTON DR Hurricane 2024-10-11
3622 HURRICANE MILTON EM Hurricane 2024-10-07
4828 HURRICANE HELENE DR Hurricane 2024-09-28
3615 TROPICAL STORM HELENE EM Tropical Storm 2024-09-24
4806 HURRICANE DEBBY DR Tropical Storm 2024-08-10
3605 TROPICAL STORM DEBBY EM Tropical Storm 2024-08-03
4734 HURRICANE IDALIA DR Hurricane 2023-08-31
3596 TROPICAL STORM IDALIA EM Tropical Storm 2023-08-28
4680 HURRICANE NICOLE DR Hurricane 2022-12-13
3587 TROPICAL STORM NICOLE EM Tropical Storm 2022-11-08
4673 HURRICANE IAN DR Hurricane 2022-09-29
3584 TROPICAL STORM IAN EM Hurricane 2022-09-24
3562 TROPICAL STORM FRED EM Hurricane 2021-08-16
3561 TROPICAL STORM ELSA EM Severe Storm 2021-07-04
3551 HURRICANE ETA EM Hurricane 2020-11-11
4486 COVID-19 PANDEMIC DR Biological 2020-03-25
3432 COVID-19 EM Biological 2020-03-13
3419 HURRICANE DORIAN EM Hurricane 2019-08-30
3405 HURRICANE MICHAEL EM Hurricane 2018-10-09
4337 HURRICANE IRMA DR Hurricane 2017-09-10
Show 20 earlier declaration records
DR# Title Type Incident Date
3385 HURRICANE IRMA EM Hurricane 2017-09-05
3377 HURRICANE MATTHEW EM Hurricane 2016-10-06
4280 HURRICANE HERMINE DR Hurricane 2016-09-28
4068 TROPICAL STORM DEBBY DR Severe Storm 2012-07-03
3288 TROPICAL STORM FAY EM Severe Storm 2008-08-21
3220 HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION EM Hurricane 2005-09-05
1561 HURRICANE JEANNE DR Hurricane 2004-09-26
1551 HURRICANE IVAN DR Hurricane 2004-09-16
1545 HURRICANE FRANCES DR Hurricane 2004-09-04
1539 TROPICAL STORM BONNIE AND HURRICANE CHARLEY DR Hurricane 2004-08-13
1481 SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING DR Severe Storm 2003-07-29
1359 SEVERE FREEZE DR Freezing 2001-02-05
2299 WITHLACOOCHEE FIRE COMPLEX FM Fire 2000-05-19
1223 EXTREME FIRE HAZARD DR Fire 1998-06-18
1195 SEVERE STORMS, HIGH WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING DR Severe Storm 1998-01-06
1141 TROPICAL STORM JOSEPHINE DR Severe Storm 1996-10-15
982 TORNADOES, FLOODING, HIGH WINDS & TIDES, FREEZING DR Tornado 1993-03-13
851 SEVERE FREEZE DR Freezing 1990-01-15
526 SEVERE WINTER WEATHER DR Freezing 1977-01-31
252 HURRICANE GLADYS DR Hurricane 1968-11-07

Storm Events in Florida

Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Citrus County.

Storm Type Events Fatalities Injuries Property Damage
Thunderstorm Wind 5,243 17 45 $24.8M
Hail 1,012 0 0 $564.6K
Heavy Rain 865 2 3 $200.0K
Flood 826 9 0 $2.0B
Tropical Storm 767 92 6 $4.9B

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025

NFIP Flood Insurance Claims

Total Claims

7,076

Total Paid

$384.0M

Avg Per Claim

$54.3K

Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data

FEMA National Risk Index

Overall Risk

Relatively High

Score: 94.7/100

Expected Annual Loss

Relatively Moderate

$112.1M/year

Social Vulnerability

Very High

Community Resilience

Very Low

Hazard Risk Breakdown

Hurricane Very High
Lightning Relatively High
Coastal Flooding Relatively High
Wildfire Relatively Moderate
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Low
Earthquake Very Low
Landslide Very Low
Drought Very Low
Hail Very Low
Winter Weather 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: Hurricane

Hurricane exposure in the model bundles the three ways a tropical system does harm, which arrive on different timescales and are insured differently: wind, storm surge on the coast, and rainfall flooding that can reach far inland well after landfall.

For Citrus County the two measures on this page point the same way: Hurricane is the county's highest-rated modeled hazard (Very High), and Hurricane declarations also lead its federal record. Where the model and the declaration history agree, the reading is comparatively straightforward, the hazard is both expected and repeatedly realised.

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

Citrus County's closest FEMA peer: Essex County, MA

Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Citrus County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.

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 Citrus County - capture-dated entries only.

Compare beyond this state

Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume

Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Citrus County: nearest out-of-state National Risk Index composite and nearest FEMA declaration count (floor ≥5 records). Record similarity only, not a forecast of the next hazard.

Further reading for this county

Understanding disaster data

Citrus County's NFIP claims file (7,076 claims) and FEMA declaration history measure different federal records - this guide separates them from modeled NRI risk.

More PlainHazard guides

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most common disaster type in Citrus County?
The most common disaster type in Citrus County is Hurricane, with 21 declarations. Other disaster types include Severe Storm (6), Tropical Storm (5), Freezing (3).
How does Citrus County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Florida average?
The typical Florida county has 40.4 FEMA declaration records; Citrus County has 40, or 1% fewer. Against the national county mean of 20.7, this county's total is 93% higher. The comparison is historical and says nothing about the probability of a future event.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Citrus County received?
Citrus County has received 23 major disaster declarations, representing 57% of all 40 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Citrus County filed?
Citrus County has 7,076 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $384.0M in payments, with an average of $54.3K per claim.
What was the worst year for disasters in Citrus County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Citrus County was 2004, with 4 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1969 to 2025.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Citrus County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Citrus County, Florida has an overall risk score of 94.7 out of 100 (Relatively High). Social vulnerability here rates Very High, while community resilience comes in at Very Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $112.1M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Citrus County?
The top hazard flagged by FEMA's NRI for Citrus County as of the latest release is Hurricane (risk rating: Very High). Other significant hazards include Lightning (Relatively High) and Coastal Flooding (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts hurricane here at roughly once every 4 years, drawn from 95 historical events on record. 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.

FEMA OpenFEMA declarations + NRI for Citrus County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Florida profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events