FEMA Records
27
High volume
Oregon · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Douglas County, OR
27 FEMA disaster declarations (1965-2025), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Severe Storm.
- 27
- FEMA declarations
- 19
- Major disasters
- 93
- NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
- Severe Storm
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Douglas County. Its 27 FEMA declarations are 62% above the Oregon county mean and exceed the count for 78% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 7%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 7%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Moderate
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 27
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 300
- 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.
FEMA OpenFEMA declaration desk
County FIPS 41019 · Douglas County 27 declarations · rank 634/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-MID · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-HIGH
- DECL-HEAVY 27
- MAJOR-MID 70%
- RANK-MID #634
- PHOTO-FINISH Greene
- NRI-MID 93
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Severe Storm
- VS-ST-HIGH +62%
Nearest declaration peer: Greene, MO (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Oregon state profile
Douglas County among high-volume declaration counties
FEMA declaration records among Douglas County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Coal · near 27
Coal · near
27 declarations
- Douglas · this county 27
Douglas · this county
27 declarations
- Greene · near 27
Greene · near
27 declarations
- Warren · near 27
Warren · near
27 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Douglas County carries 27 FEMA declaration records, ranked 634 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Where Douglas County ranks in the national declaration registry
Douglas County vs. high-volume counties in this registry
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Douglas County
27 Top 22% higher than 78% 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 · 2026-08-25
Douglas County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Douglas County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $56.0M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Wildfire carries the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High). 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 Douglas County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 300 paid claims, totaling $3.9M. PlainHazard uses 50-499 claims for this descriptive band; FEMA does not publish it as a safety or coverage category. The $13.0K average describes payments on recorded claims only, leaving uninsured damage and properties without a claim outside the measure.
The declaration register points in the busier direction. Douglas County's 27 federal records stand 62% above the Oregon county mean of 16.6. That comparison describes how often federal action was recorded, including any Major Disaster, Emergency, and Fire Management entries shown on this page; it does not convert the count into future probability.
FEMA National Risk Index
This county sits among the highest-risk counties nationally on FEMA's National Risk Index, a composite score of 92.9/100 (Relatively Moderate). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Moderate (roughly $94.0M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability reads Relatively High and community resilience Relatively Moderate, both critical modifiers of realized harm here. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Wildfire stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at roughly once every 185 years here.
73 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Douglas County, OR · 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) High
20/30
27 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.3x national county average)
County Disaster Density Very High
20/25
27 declarations (1.6x state county average of 17)
Major Disaster Share High
18/25
19 of 27 declarations are major disasters (70%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
15/20
6 different disaster types declared in Douglas County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Douglas 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
70%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
93
Relatively Moderate
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Douglas 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Wildfire | Relatively High | roughly once every 185 years |
| Earthquake | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 70 years |
| Landslide | Relatively Moderate | an average of 7.5 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively High | an average of 1.3 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Moderate | 4.4 modeled event-days per year |
| Volcanic Activity | Relatively Low | roughly once every 833 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Moderate | an average of 18 times per year |
| Avalanche | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 30 years |
| Ice Storm | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 7 years |
| Coastal Flooding | Relatively Moderate | an average of 6 times per year |
| Lightning | Relatively Low | an average of 7.2 times per year |
| Tsunami | Very Low | roughly once every 7 years |
| Strong Wind | Relatively Low | roughly once every 26 years |
| Hail | Very Low | roughly once every 10 years |
| Drought | Very Low | 36 modeled event-days per year |
| Tornado | Very Low | roughly once every 21 years |
| Cold Wave | Very Low | roughly once every 184 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Severe Storm 9
Fire 7
Flood 7
Biological 2
Coastal Storm 1
Fishing Losses 1
What Severe Storm declarations mean here
Severe Storm is the most frequent declaration type on Douglas County's record, 33% of its declarations. In FEMA's vocabulary this covers convective weather: thunderstorm straight-line winds, large hail, and the multi-day outbreaks that often carry embedded tornadoes. Activity is heaviest in spring and summer, though the season varies by region.
These events behave differently from a hurricane on paper. Damage tends to be distributed along a storm track rather than concentrated on a coastline, and a declaration typically follows an outbreak that crossed several counties over a few days, not a single point of impact. Because the qualifying threshold is the cost of uninsured public and individual losses rather than storm intensity, two similar storms can produce a declaration in one year and none in another.
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 - 19 70.4%
of all 27 declarations
Fire Management - 5 18.5%
of all 27 declarations
Emergency - 3 11.1%
of all 27 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 5 | |
| 2019 | 3 | |
| 2016 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 1 | |
| 2012 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 1 | |
| 1997 | 2 | |
| 1996 | 2 | |
| 1994 | 1 | |
Show 3 earlier declaration years
| 1974 | 1 | |
| 1972 | 1 | |
| 1965 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 27 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 27 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4881 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2025-07-22 |
| 4562 | WILDFIRES AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR | Fire | 2020-09-15 |
| 3542 | WILDFIRES | EM | Fire | 2020-09-10 |
| 5365 | ARCHIE CREEK FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-09-09 |
| 4499 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-28 |
| 3429 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 5285 | MILE POST 97 FIRE | FM | Fire | 2019-07-27 |
| 4452 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2019-07-09 |
| 4432 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2019-05-02 |
| 4258 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-02-17 |
| 5092 | STOUTS CREEK FIRE | FM | Fire | 2015-07-31 |
| 5037 | DOUGLAS FIRE COMPLEX | FM | Fire | 2013-07-28 |
| 4055 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2012-03-02 |
| 1956 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, FLOODING, MUDSLIDES, LANDSLIDES, AND DEBRIS FLOWS | DR | Severe Storm | 2011-02-17 |
| 1632 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2006-03-20 |
| 3228 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Coastal Storm | 2005-09-07 |
| 2549 | OR-BLAND MOUNTAIN WILDFIRE-08-20-2004 | FM | Fire | 2004-08-21 |
| 1510 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-02-19 |
| 1405 | SEVERE WINTER STORM WITH HIGH WINDS | DR | Severe Storm | 2002-03-12 |
| 1160 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, LAND AND MUDSLIDES, FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1997-01-23 |
Show 7 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1149 | FLOODING, LAND, MUD SLIDES, HIGH WINDS,SEVERE STORMS | DR | Flood | 1996-12-23 |
| 1107 | SEVERE STORMS AND HIGH WINDS | DR | Severe Storm | 1996-03-19 |
| 1099 | HIGH WINDS, SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1996-02-09 |
| 1036 | THE EL NINO (THE SALMON INDUSTRY) | DR | Fishing Losses | 1994-08-02 |
| 413 | SEVERE STORMS, SNOWMELT & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1974-01-25 |
| 319 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1972-01-21 |
| 184 | HEAVY RAINS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1964-12-24 |
Storm Events in Oregon
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Douglas County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Wind | 859 | 13 | 10 | $3.2B |
| Heavy Snow | 654 | 2 | 0 | $139.2M |
| Frost/Freeze | 391 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| Wildfire | 311 | 15 | 38 | $15.1M |
| Flood | 244 | 3 | 1 | $68.4M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
300
Total Paid
$3.9M
Avg Per Claim
$13.0K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Moderate
Score: 92.9/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Moderate
$94.0M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively High
Community Resilience
Relatively Moderate
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Wildfire Relatively High
Earthquake Relatively Moderate
Landslide Relatively Moderate
Riverine Flooding Relatively High
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Volcanic Activity Relatively Low
Winter Weather Relatively Moderate
Avalanche Relatively Moderate
Ice Storm Relatively Moderate
Coastal Flooding Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively Low
Tsunami Very Low
Strong Wind Relatively Low
Hail Very Low
Drought Very Low
Tornado Very Low
Cold Wave 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: Wildfire
Wildfire risk in the model reflects fuel, terrain, weather and how much development sits in the wildland-urban interface. It is one of the few hazards where the exposure is materially changed by land management and building choices, not only by where the county happens to be.
Worth noting for Douglas County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Wildfire carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively High), while the county's declaration history is led by Severe Storm. 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
Douglas County's closest FEMA peer: Essex County, VA
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Douglas County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Douglas County shows 27 FEMA declarations, led by Severe Storm.
Similar Major-disaster share
Douglas County: 19 of 27 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Douglas County: NRI composite 92.9 (Relatively Moderate).
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 Douglas County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Douglas 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.
Similar NRI composite
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA NRI score. This county: 92.9 (Relatively Moderate).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 27. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Douglas County's NFIP claims file (300 claims) and FEMA declaration history measure different federal records - this guide separates them from modeled NRI risk.
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).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common disaster type in Douglas County?
The most common disaster type in Douglas County is Severe Storm, with 9 declarations. Other disaster types include Fire (7), Flood (7), Biological (2).
How does Douglas County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Oregon average?
FEMA lists 27 declaration records for Douglas County. That is 62% above the Oregon county mean of 16.6. Its count is also 30% above the national county mean of 20.7. A larger declaration history records more federal actions; it is not a forecast of the county's next hazard.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Douglas County received?
Douglas County has received 19 major disaster declarations, representing 70% of all 27 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Douglas County filed?
Douglas County has 300 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $3.9M in payments, with an average of $13.0K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Douglas County?
No. In Douglas County, Wildfire has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $56.0M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Douglas County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Douglas County was 2020, with 5 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1965 to 2025.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Douglas County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Douglas County, Oregon has an overall risk score of 92.9 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively High and community resilience is Relatively Moderate. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $94.0M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Douglas County?
FEMA's NRI data points to Douglas County is Wildfire (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Earthquake (Relatively Moderate) and Landslide (Relatively Moderate). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts wildfire here at roughly once every 185 years. 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.
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 Douglas County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Oregon profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events