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North Carolina · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index

Davidson County, NC

5 FEMA disaster declarations (2021–2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Tropical Storm.

5
FEMA declarations
1
Major disasters
87
NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
Tropical Storm
Top hazard

FEMA's National Risk Index places Davidson County in the top 13% of U.S. counties for overall natural-hazard risk, and its FEMA disaster-declaration count is higher than 72% of all 2,729 counties tracked.

How does Davidson County compare?

FEMA disaster declarations, this county versus the North Carolina county average and the national county average.

Davidson County
5
North Carolina county avg
4.8
National county avg
3.7

How disaster-prone is Davidson County?

Davidson County, North Carolina has recorded 5 FEMA disaster declarations between 2021 and 2026, of which 1 were classified as Major Disaster declarations (DR) requiring federal individual and public assistance. That puts the county's average at 1.0 declarations per year across a 5-year record, or roughly 5% above the North Carolina county average of 4.8 and 34% above the national county average of 3.7. Declaration counts reflect federal recognition of event severity, not pure hazard frequency, smaller incidents handled locally never appear in FEMA's ledger.

The dominant disaster type on record is Tropical Storm, with 2 of 5 declarations falling under this category. FEMA's National Risk Index assigns this county an overall risk rating of Relatively Moderate (composite score 87.2/100), driven by an Expected Annual Loss rating of Relatively Moderate equivalent to roughly $64.3M in annualized losses. Social vulnerability scores Relatively Moderate and community resilience scores Relatively Low - two factors that modify raw hazard exposure into actual harm. The single highest-risk natural hazard identified for this county is Ice Storm (Very High).

NFIP flood insurance claims data for this county is not present in the FEMA claims extract, which typically indicates either low historical flood activity or low policy penetration. Taken together, these indicators place Davidson County at a moderate relative risk level for federally recognized disasters. Households should pair this historical lens with forward-looking hazard maps, flood zones, wildfire risk overlays, and seismic zones published by FEMA and state emergency management, before making preparedness, insurance, or relocation decisions.

Risk Assessment

How Davidson County's disaster history compares to state and national averages.

Risk Level

Moderate

vs. North Carolina Avg

+5%

State avg: 4.8

vs. National Avg

+34%

National avg: 3.7

Avg Per Year

1.0

Over 5 years

FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Davidson County

Davidson County NRI risk profile 8-axis FEMA National Risk Index radar showing per-hazard composite scores for Earthquake 25, Flood 0, Hurricane 48, Tornado 48, Wildfire 8, Drought 25, Heat Wave 25, Winter Storm 92. Overall composite 34 of 100, classified Moderate. Earthquake Flood Hurricane Tornado Wildfire Drought Heat Wave Winter Storm 34 composite
Davidson County NRI risk profile FIPS 37057 · composite 34/100 (Moderate)

The radar plots Davidson 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.

FEMA Records

5

Total declarations

NRI Source

FEMA 2023

Latest NRI release

County FIPS

37057

NC state code

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

Disaster Types

Breakdown of 5 FEMA disaster declarations in Davidson County by incident type.

Tropical Storm 2
Winter Storm 1
Hurricane 1
Severe Storm 1

Declaration Types

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

Emergency - 4 80.0%

of all 5 declarations

Major Disaster - 1 20.0%

of all 5 declarations

FEMA Declarations Timeline

Disaster declarations per year for Davidson County.

Year Declarations
2026 1
2024 2
2023 1
2021 1

Disaster Declarations

All 5 FEMA disaster declarations for Davidson County, North Carolina.

DR# Title Type Incident Date
3637 SEVERE WINTER STORM EM Winter Storm 2026-01-24
3617 HURRICANE HELENE EM Tropical Storm 2024-09-26
3608 TROPICAL STORM DEBBY EM Tropical Storm 2024-08-06
3586 HURRICANE IAN EM Hurricane 2022-10-01
4588 TROPICAL STORM ETA DR Severe Storm 2021-03-03

Storm Events in North Carolina

NOAA severe weather data for North Carolina (2015–2025). Storm event data is tracked at the state level.

Storm Type Events Fatalities Injuries Property Damage
Thunderstorm Wind 7,857 11 60 $65.3M
Flash Flood 2,097 113 6 $2.4B
Hail 1,762 0 0 $122.5M
Winter Weather 1,359 6 2 $425.0K
Winter Storm 848 7 0 $11.1M

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

FEMA National Risk Index

FEMA's composite risk score combining 18 natural hazard types, social vulnerability, and community resilience for Davidson County.

Overall Risk

Relatively Moderate

Score: 87.2/100

Expected Annual Loss

Relatively Moderate

$64.3M/year

Social Vulnerability

Relatively Moderate

Community Resilience

Relatively Low

Hazard Risk Breakdown

Risk rating for each of the 18 FEMA NRI natural hazard types in Davidson County.

Ice Storm Very High
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Moderate
Hurricane Relatively Moderate
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Winter Weather Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Hail Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively Moderate
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Landslide Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Low
Wildfire Very Low

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 North Carolina

Other North Carolina counties with similar disaster declaration counts.

Disaster Preparedness Guides

Frequently Asked Questions

How many natural disasters has Davidson County, North Carolina had?
Davidson County, North Carolina has received 5 FEMA disaster declarations from 2021 to 2026. Of these, 1 were major disaster declarations.
What is the most common disaster type in Davidson County?
The most common disaster type in Davidson County is Tropical Storm, with 2 declarations. Other disaster types include Winter Storm (1), Hurricane (1), Severe Storm (1).
How does Davidson County's disaster risk compare to the North Carolina average?
Davidson County has 5 disaster declarations, which is 5% higher than the North Carolina county average of 4.8 declarations. Compared to the national county average of 3.7, it is 34% higher.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Davidson County received?
Davidson County has received 1 major disaster declaration, representing 20% of all 5 disaster declarations. Major disaster declarations typically involve significant damage requiring federal assistance.
What types of storms are most common in North Carolina?
The most common storm types in North Carolina include Thunderstorm Wind (7,857 events), Flash Flood (2,097 events), Hail (1,762 events). NOAA storm event data covers severe weather from 2015 to 2025.
What was the worst year for disasters in Davidson County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Davidson County was 2024, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 2021 to 2026.
What is the overall disaster risk level for Davidson County?
Based on FEMA declaration history, Davidson County has a moderate disaster risk level with 5 total declarations. This county has a moderate number of disaster declarations.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Davidson County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Davidson County, North Carolina has an overall risk score of 87.2 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively Moderate and community resilience is Relatively Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $64.3M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Davidson County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Davidson County is Ice Storm (risk rating: Very High). Other significant hazards include Tornado (Relatively Moderate) and Cold Wave (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 Davidson County

Davidson County, NC has 5 FEMA disaster declarations on record, a moderate historical disaster load, 5% above the North Carolina county average.

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.