FEMA Records
23
Above median
Maryland · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Frederick County, MD
23 FEMA disaster declarations (1971-2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Hurricane.
- 23
- FEMA declarations
- 16
- Major disasters
- 74
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Hurricane
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Frederick County. Its 23 FEMA declarations are 17% above the Maryland county mean and exceed the count for 62% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 26%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 26%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 23
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 270
- 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.
FEMA OpenFEMA declaration desk
County FIPS 24021 · Frederick County 23 declarations · rank 1173/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-LOW · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-HEAVY 23
- MAJOR-MID 70%
- RANK-LOWER #1,173
- PHOTO-FINISH Roanoke
- NRI-LOW 74
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Hurricane
- VS-ST-ABOVE +17%
Nearest declaration peer: Roanoke, VA (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Maryland state profile
Frederick County in the declaration-count neighbourhood
FEMA declaration records among Frederick County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Amherst · near 23
Amherst · near
23 declarations
- Frederick · this county 23
Frederick · this county
23 declarations
- Roanoke · near 23
Roanoke · near
23 declarations
- Vance · near 23
Vance · near
23 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Frederick County carries 23 FEMA declaration records, ranked 1173 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
How Frederick County's FEMA declaration count compares nationally
Frederick County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Frederick County
23 Top 38% higher than 62% 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
Frederick County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Frederick County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $32.2M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Winter Weather 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 Frederick County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 270 paid claims, totaling $2.1M. PlainHazard uses 50-499 claims for this descriptive band; FEMA does not publish it as a safety or coverage category. The $7.7K 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. Frederick County's 23 federal records stand 17% above the Maryland county mean of 19.6. 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 carries a high composite score on FEMA's National Risk Index, 74.2/100, rated Relatively Low. Its Expected Annual Loss rating is Relatively Low (roughly $49.9M in annualized losses), and a Very Low social-vulnerability profile combined with Relatively High community resilience shapes how much of that raw exposure becomes realized harm. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Winter Weather stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 14 times per year here, based on 272 historical events on record.
64 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Frederick County, MD · 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
17/30
23 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.1x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
15/25
23 declarations (1.2x state county average of 20)
Major Disaster Share High
17/25
16 of 23 declarations are major disasters (70%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
15/20
6 different disaster types declared in Frederick County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Frederick 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
74
Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Frederick 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Winter Weather | Relatively High | an average of 14 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Moderate | 4.2 modeled event-days per year |
| Lightning | Relatively High | an average of 37 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Moderate | an average of 4.7 times per year |
| Strong Wind | Relatively Moderate | an average of 7.7 times per year |
| Hurricane | Relatively Low | roughly once every 11 years |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | an average of 3.8 times per year |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | roughly once every 920 years |
| Drought | Relatively Moderate | 4 modeled event-days per year |
| Tornado | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 2 years |
| Landslide | Relatively Low | roughly once every 2 years |
| Ice Storm | Relatively Low | an average of 1 time per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Low | an average of 1.8 times per year |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 13,919 years |
| Avalanche | Very Low | roughly once every 100 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Hurricane 6
Snowstorm 5
Flood 5
Severe Storm 4
Biological 2
Winter Storm 1
What Hurricane declarations mean here
Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Frederick County's federal record, 26% 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 - 16 69.6%
of all 23 declarations
Emergency - 7 30.4%
of all 23 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2018 | 1 | |
| 2016 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 2 | |
| 2011 | 1 | |
| 2010 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2003 | 2 | |
| 2000 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 3 | |
| 1994 | 1 | |
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1979 | 1 | |
| 1977 | 1 | |
Show 3 earlier declaration years
| 1976 | 1 | |
| 1972 | 1 | |
| 1971 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 23 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 23 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3634 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Winter Storm | 2026-01-24 |
| 4491 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-26 |
| 3430 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4374 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2018-06-25 |
| 4261 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR | Snowstorm | 2016-03-04 |
| 4091 | HURRICANE SANDY | DR | Hurricane | 2012-11-20 |
| 3349 | HURRICANE SANDY | EM | Hurricane | 2012-10-28 |
| 3335 | HURRICANE IRENE | EM | Hurricane | 2011-08-27 |
| 1910 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORMS | DR | Snowstorm | 2010-05-06 |
| 3251 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-13 |
| 1492 | HURRICANE ISABEL | DR | Hurricane | 2003-09-19 |
| 3179 | SNOW | EM | Severe Storm | 2003-03-14 |
| 1324 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR | Severe Storm | 2000-04-10 |
| 1139 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING ASSOC WITH TROPICAL STORM FRAN | DR | Hurricane | 1996-09-17 |
| 1094 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1996-01-23 |
| 1081 | BLIZZARD OF 96 (SEVERE SNOW STORM) | DR | Snowstorm | 1996-01-11 |
| 1016 | SEVERE WINTER WEATHER AND ICE STORMS | DR | Snowstorm | 1994-03-16 |
| 3100 | SEVERE SNOWFALL & WINTER STORM | EM | Snowstorm | 1993-03-16 |
| 601 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES & FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1979-09-14 |
| 522 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1976-10-14 |
Show 3 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 489 | HEAVY RAINS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1975-10-04 |
| 341 | TROPICAL STORM AGNES | DR | Flood | 1972-06-23 |
| 309 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1971-08-17 |
Storm Events in Maryland
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Frederick County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 3,959 | 6 | 43 | $102.0M |
| Winter Weather | 1,341 | 4 | 26 | $95.0K |
| Flood | 1,089 | 1 | 0 | $1.4M |
| Flash Flood | 790 | 9 | 4 | $96.3M |
| Dense Fog | 513 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
270
Total Paid
$2.1M
Avg Per Claim
$7.7K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 74.2/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$49.9M/year
Social Vulnerability
Very Low
Community Resilience
Relatively High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Winter Weather Relatively High
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively High
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Hurricane Relatively Low
Hail Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Moderate
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Landslide Relatively Low
Ice Storm Relatively Low
Cold Wave Relatively Low
Wildfire Very Low
Avalanche 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: Winter Weather
Winter Weather in the model means the accumulation of snow and cold that disrupts rather than destroys: road closures, roof loads, burst pipes and lost heating. Its costs land heavily on transport and on households least able to absorb an interruption.
Worth noting for Frederick County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Winter Weather carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively High), while the county's declaration history is led by Hurricane. 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
Frederick County's closest FEMA peer: Laclede County, MO
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Frederick County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Frederick County shows 23 FEMA declarations, led by Hurricane.
Similar Major-disaster share
Frederick County: 16 of 23 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Frederick County: NRI composite 74.2 (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 Frederick County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Frederick 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: 74.2 (Relatively Low).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 23. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Frederick County's NFIP claims file (270 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 Frederick County?
The most common disaster type in Frederick County is Hurricane, with 6 declarations. Other disaster types include Snowstorm (5), Flood (5), Severe Storm (4).
How does Frederick County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Maryland average?
FEMA lists 23 declaration records for Frederick County. That is 17% above the Maryland county mean of 19.6. Its count is also 11% 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 Frederick County received?
Frederick County has received 16 major disaster declarations, representing 70% of all 23 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Frederick County filed?
Frederick County has 270 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $2.1M in payments, with an average of $7.7K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Frederick County?
No. In Frederick County, Winter Weather has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $32.2M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Frederick County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Frederick County was 1996, with 3 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1971 to 2026.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Frederick County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Frederick County, Maryland has an overall risk score of 74.2 out of 100 (Relatively Low). The county's social vulnerability rating is Very Low and community resilience is Relatively High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $49.9M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Frederick County?
The top hazard flagged by FEMA's NRI for Frederick County as of the latest release is Winter Weather (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Heat Wave (Relatively Moderate) and Lightning (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts winter weather here at an average of 14 times per year, drawn from 272 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 Frederick County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Maryland profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events