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Colorado · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index

Costilla County, CO

1 FEMA disaster declarations (2018–2018), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Very Low. Most common hazard: Fire.

1
FEMA declarations
0
Major disasters
7
NRI risk · Very Low
Fire
Top hazard

FEMA's National Risk Index places Costilla County in the top 93% of U.S. counties for overall natural-hazard risk, and its FEMA disaster-declaration count is higher than 0% of all 2,729 counties tracked.

How does Costilla County compare?

Costilla County
1
Colorado county avg
1.6
National county avg
3.7

How disaster-prone is Costilla County?

Costilla County, Colorado has recorded 1 FEMA disaster declarations between 2018 and 2018, of which 0 were classified as Major Disaster declarations (DR) requiring federal individual and public assistance. That puts the county's average at - declarations per year, or roughly 36% below the Colorado county average of 1.6 and 73% below the national county average of 3.7.

The dominant disaster type on record is Fire, with 1 of 1 declarations falling under this category. FEMA's National Risk Index places this county in the low end of the national distribution, composite score 6.6/100 (Very Low). Expected Annual Loss is rated Very Low (roughly $1.9M in annualized losses). Two modifiers shape how that exposure becomes real-world harm here: social vulnerability (Very High) and community resilience (Very Low). Even the county's top-rated hazard, Landslide, only reaches Relatively Low on FEMA's scale, none of the 18 modeled hazards stand out here.

Taken together, Costilla County's federal disaster history is about as quiet as U.S. counties get, a very low relative risk level on this measure.

Risk Assessment

Risk Level

Very Low

vs. Colorado Avg

-36%

State avg: 1.6

vs. National Avg

-73%

National avg: 3.7

Avg Per Year

-

-

FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Costilla County

Costilla County NRI risk profile 8-axis FEMA National Risk Index radar showing per-hazard composite scores for Earthquake 8, Flood 0, Hurricane 0, Tornado 8, Wildfire 25, Drought 48, Heat Wave 8, Winter Storm 25. Overall composite 15 of 100, classified Low. Earthquake Flood Hurricane Tornado Wildfire Drought Heat Wave Winter Storm 15 composite
Costilla County NRI risk profile FIPS 08023 · composite 15/100 (Low)
How to read this radar

The radar plots Costilla County's relative exposure to the eight headline natural hazards used by the FEMA National Risk Index. Each axis is the qualitative NRI risk rating (Very Low through Very High) re-expressed on a 0-100 scale so that the polygon shape lets you compare a county against another at a glance. A rounder polygon means broad multi-hazard exposure; a spiky polygon means one or two dominant hazards drive most of the modeled risk.

FEMA Records

1

Total declarations

NRI Source

FEMA 2023

Latest NRI release

County FIPS

08023

CO state code

Source: FEMA National Risk Index FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, 2023 release

Disaster Types

Fire 1

Declaration Types

What DR / EM / FM mean

FEMA categorizes declarations as Major Disasters (DR), Emergencies (EM), or Fire Management Assistance (FM).

Fire Management - 1 100.0%

of all 1 declarations

FEMA Declarations Timeline

Year Declarations
2018 1

Disaster Declarations

DR# Title Type Incident Date
5246 SPRING CREEK FIRE FM Fire 2018-06-28

Storm Events in Colorado

Storm Type Events Fatalities Injuries Property Damage
Hail 5,405 0 100 $2.9B
Winter Weather 2,815 3 23 $22.5K
High Wind 2,148 5 6 $21.2M
Thunderstorm Wind 1,995 2 11 $5.7M
Winter Storm 1,532 0 0 $848.0K

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

FEMA National Risk Index

Overall Risk

Very Low

Score: 6.6/100

Expected Annual Loss

Very Low

$1.9M/year

Social Vulnerability

Very High

Community Resilience

Very Low

Hazard Risk Breakdown

Landslide Relatively Low
Wildfire Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Very Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Avalanche Very Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Cold Wave Very Low
Hail Very Low
Tornado Very Low
Heat Wave Very Low
Ice Storm Very Low
Strong Wind Very Low
Volcanic Activity No Rating

Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) Ratings reflect relative scores among all US counties. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri

Counties with Similar Risk in Colorado

Frequently Asked Questions

How many natural disasters has Costilla County, Colorado had?
Costilla County, Colorado has received 1 FEMA disaster declarations from 2018 to 2018.
What is the most common disaster type in Costilla County?
The most common disaster type in Costilla County is Fire, with 1 declaration.
How does Costilla County's disaster risk compare to the Colorado average?
Costilla County has 1 disaster declarations, which is 36% lower than the Colorado county average of 1.6 declarations. Compared to the national county average of 3.7, it is 73% lower.
What types of storms are most common in Colorado?
The most common storm types in Colorado include Hail (5,405 events), Winter Weather (2,815 events), High Wind (2,148 events). NOAA storm event data covers severe weather from 2015 to 2025.
What is the overall disaster risk level for Costilla County?
Costilla County has just 1 FEMA disaster declaration on record, placing it in the very-low-risk band, among the quieter counties in FEMA's declaration history.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Costilla County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Costilla County, Colorado has an overall risk score of 6.6 out of 100 (Very Low). The county's social vulnerability rating is Very High and community resilience is Very Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Very Low, representing $1.9M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Costilla County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Costilla County is Landslide (risk rating: Relatively Low). Other significant hazards include Wildfire (Relatively Low) and Drought (Relatively Moderate). These scores are based on FEMA's analysis of historical event frequency, 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.

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 Costilla County

Costilla County, CO has 1 FEMA disaster declarations on record, a very low historical disaster load, 36% below the Colorado county average.

  • Its most common federal declaration type is fire management (1 of 1) - know the hazards most likely here before they happen. Colorado overview
  • See how this county ranks against the rest of the country for disaster frequency. Most-disaster rankings
  • Read how to read FEMA declarations, NRI risk scores, and what they do and don't tell you. Disaster-data guide

Historical declaration counts describe past federal response, not a forecast. For current threats, follow the National Weather Service and local officials; in an emergency call 911.

All federal data sources used on this page
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. This page draws directly on FEMA federal disaster data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.