FEMA Records
23
Above median
Nebraska · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Hamilton County, NE
23 FEMA disaster declarations (1967-2025), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Very Low. Most common hazard: Severe Storm.
- 23
- FEMA declarations
- 21
- Major disasters
- 43
- NRI risk · Very Low
- Severe Storm
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Hamilton County. Its 23 FEMA declarations are 37% above the Nebraska county mean and exceed the count for 62% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it safer than 43%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Safer than 43%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Very Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 23
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 15
- 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 31081 · Hamilton County 23 declarations · rank 1229/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-HEAVY · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-LOW · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-HEAVY 23
- MAJOR-HEAVY 91%
- RANK-LOWER #1,229
- PHOTO-FINISH Roanoke
- NRI-LOW Very Low
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Severe Storm
- VS-ST-ABOVE +37%
Nearest declaration peer: Roanoke, VA (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Nebraska state profile
Hamilton County in the declaration-count neighbourhood
FEMA declaration records among Hamilton County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Amherst · near 23
Amherst · near
23 declarations
- Hamilton · this county 23
Hamilton · 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 Hamilton County carries 23 FEMA declaration records, ranked 1229 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
How Hamilton County's FEMA declaration count compares nationally
Hamilton County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Hamilton 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
Hamilton County's FEMA Risk Index score
What does Hamilton County's hazard record show?
FEMA National Risk Index
FEMA's data shows an elevated National Risk Index composite of 42.6/100 for this county (Very Low rating). Expected Annual Loss comes in at Relatively Low (roughly $20.4M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability (Very Low) and community resilience (Relatively High) both factor into how that raw exposure plays out on the ground. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Hail stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 7.2 times per year here, based on 273 historical events on record.
Reading the federal records together
This county has a small entry in FEMA's NFIP paid-claims table: 15 claims and $76.6K paid in total. PlainHazard calls 1-49 claims a light registry record, a label for this dataset rather than a finding that flood exposure is low. A short claims history can also reflect insurance take-up, the period covered, or losses that were never insured.
The declaration register points in the busier direction. Hamilton County's 23 federal records stand 37% above the Nebraska county mean of 16.8. 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.
77 /100
Historical Activity Index
Very High historical activity
Hamilton County, NE · 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
17/25
23 declarations (1.4x state county average of 17)
Major Disaster Share Very High
23/25
21 of 23 declarations are major disasters (91%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
20/20
8 different disaster types declared in Hamilton County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Hamilton 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
91%
Mostly major
NRI risk score
43
Very Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Hamilton 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Hail | Relatively High | an average of 7.2 times per year |
| Strong Wind | Relatively High | an average of 4.1 times per year |
| Drought | Relatively Moderate | 42 modeled event-days per year |
| Ice Storm | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 2 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 14 times per year |
| Tornado | Relatively Low | roughly once every 2 years |
| Lightning | Relatively Low | an average of 43 times per year |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 4,563 years |
| Heat Wave | Very Low | 5.2 modeled event-days per year |
| Cold Wave | Very Low | an average of 4.7 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Very Low | roughly once every 2 years |
| Earthquake | Very Low | roughly once every 1,783 years |
| Landslide | Very Low | roughly once every 14 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Severe Storm 14
Biological 2
Flood 2
Winter Storm 1
Snowstorm 1
Hurricane 1
Tornado 1
Severe Ice Storm 1
What Severe Storm declarations mean here
Severe Storm is the most frequent declaration type on Hamilton County's record, 61% 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 - 21 91.3%
of all 23 declarations
Emergency - 2 8.7%
of all 23 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2018 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 1 | |
| 2014 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 1 | |
| 2010 | 1 | |
| 2009 | 1 | |
| 2008 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 2 | |
| 2004 | 1 | |
Show 6 earlier declaration years
| 1998 | 1 | |
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1990 | 1 | |
| 1980 | 1 | |
| 1976 | 1 | |
| 1967 | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4868 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR | Winter Storm | 2025-05-21 |
| 4808 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2024-08-20 |
| 4641 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 2022-02-23 |
| 4616 | SEVERE STORMS AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR | Severe Storm | 2021-09-06 |
| 4521 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-04-04 |
| 3483 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4375 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR | Snowstorm | 2018-06-29 |
| 4225 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2015-06-25 |
| 4185 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2014-07-28 |
| 4014 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2011-08-12 |
| 1878 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORM | DR | Severe Storm | 2010-02-25 |
| 1853 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 2009-07-31 |
| 1770 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2008-06-20 |
| 1674 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR | Severe Storm | 2007-01-07 |
| 3245 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUEES | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-13 |
| 1590 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2005-06-23 |
| 1517 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-05-25 |
| 1190 | SEVERE SNOW STORMS, RAIN, AND STRONG WINDS | DR | Severe Storm | 1997-11-01 |
| 998 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1993-07-19 |
| 873 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES & FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1990-07-04 |
Show 3 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 625 | SEVERE STORMS & TORNADOES | DR | Tornado | 1980-06-04 |
| 500 | ICE STORMS & HIGH WINDS | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 1976-04-08 |
| 228 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1967-07-18 |
Storm Events in Nebraska
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Hamilton County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 6,079 | 0 | 2 | $237.7M |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 4,757 | 3 | 19 | $228.1M |
| Drought | 1,658 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| High Wind | 1,647 | 1 | 1 | $22.1M |
| Winter Storm | 1,155 | 0 | 2 | $335.0K |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
15
Total Paid
$76.6K
Avg Per Claim
$5.1K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Very Low
Score: 42.6/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$20.4M/year
Social Vulnerability
Very Low
Community Resilience
Relatively High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Hail Relatively High
Strong Wind Relatively High
Drought Relatively Moderate
Ice Storm Relatively Moderate
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Tornado Relatively Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Wildfire Very Low
Heat Wave Very Low
Cold Wave Very Low
Riverine Flooding Very Low
Earthquake Very Low
Landslide 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: Hail
Hail is among the most expensive hazards in the model relative to how little it threatens life. It concentrates on roofs, vehicles and crops, and a single severe storm can generate an insurance loss across a metropolitan area without a single injury.
For Hamilton County the two measures on this page point the same way: Hail is the county's highest-rated modeled hazard (Relatively High), and Severe Storm 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
Hamilton County's closest FEMA peer: Iowa County, IA
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Hamilton County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Hamilton County shows 23 FEMA declarations, led by Severe Storm.
Similar Major-disaster share
Hamilton County: 21 of 23 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Hamilton County: NRI composite 42.6 (Very 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 Hamilton County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Hamilton 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: 42.6 (Very 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
Most disaster-prone counties
With 23 FEMA declarations, Hamilton County sits in the high-volume declaration band - see how that count ranks against other U.S. counties.
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 Hamilton County?
The most common disaster type in Hamilton County is Severe Storm, with 14 declarations. Other disaster types include Biological (2), Flood (2), Winter Storm (1).
How does Hamilton County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Nebraska average?
FEMA lists 23 declaration records for Hamilton County. That is 37% above the Nebraska county mean of 16.8. 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 Hamilton County received?
Hamilton County has received 21 major disaster declarations, representing 91% of all 23 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Hamilton County filed?
Hamilton County has 15 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $76.6K in payments, with an average of $5.1K per claim.
What was the worst year for disasters in Hamilton County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Hamilton County was 2005, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1967 to 2025.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Hamilton County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Hamilton County, Nebraska has an overall risk score of 42.6 out of 100 (Very Low). Social vulnerability here rates Very Low, while community resilience comes in at Relatively High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $20.4M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Hamilton County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Hamilton County as of the latest release is Hail (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Strong Wind (Relatively High) and Drought (Relatively Moderate). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts hail here at an average of 7.2 times per year, drawn from 273 historical events on record. 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 Hamilton County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Nebraska profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events