FEMA Records
35
Very high volume
Florida · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Indian River County, FL
35 FEMA disaster declarations (1977-2025), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively High. Most common hazard: Hurricane.
- 35
- FEMA declarations
- 19
- Major disasters
- 96
- NRI risk · Relatively High
- Hurricane
- Top hazard
The verdict
Indian River County has a nationally busy FEMA history: 35 declarations, more than 93% of counties in this registry. But the state comparison tempers that reading: the total is 13% below the Florida county mean. FEMA's separate National Risk Index places the county in the riskiest 4%; that score models loss and vulnerability rather than counting declarations.
- Riskiest 4%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively High
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 35
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 3,349
- 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 12061 · Indian River County 35 declarations · rank 205/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-HIGH · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-BELOW
- DECL-HEAVY 35
- MAJOR-MID 54%
- RANK-UPPER #205
- PHOTO-FINISH Okeechobee
- NRI-HIGH 96
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Hurricane
- VS-ST-BELOW -13%
Nearest declaration peer: Okeechobee, FL (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Florida state profile
Indian River County among high-volume declaration counties
FEMA declaration records among Indian River County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Brunswick · near 35
Brunswick · near
35 declarations
- Cass · near 35
Cass · near
35 declarations
- Indian River · this county 35
Indian River · this county
35 declarations
- Okeechobee · near 35
Okeechobee · near
35 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Indian River County carries 35 FEMA declaration records, ranked 205 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Where Indian River County ranks in the national declaration registry
Indian River County vs. high-volume counties in this registry
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Indian River County
35 Top 7% higher than 93% 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
Indian River County's FEMA Risk Index score
What does Indian River County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
FEMA's NFIP table contains a substantial paid-claim history for this county: 3,349 claims and $67.0M in payments. PlainHazard labels 500 or more claims a heavy registry record; that is a reporting bucket, not an official FEMA risk grade. The average paid claim was $20.0K. NFIP totals exclude uninsured flood losses and do not measure how many properties currently carry a policy.
Start with the state benchmark: a Florida county averages 40.4 federal declaration records, while Indian River County has 35. The gap is 13% below that mean. Fewer entries indicate a quieter history of recorded federal actions, not immunity from a hazard and not a prediction about what happens next.
FEMA National Risk Index
This county sits among the highest-risk counties nationally on FEMA's National Risk Index, a composite score of 95.6/100 (Relatively High). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Moderate (roughly $163.1M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability reads Relatively High and community resilience Relatively High, both critical modifiers of realized harm here. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Hurricane stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Very High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at roughly once every 3 years here, based on 104 historical events on record.
65 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Indian River County, FL · 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) Very High
25/30
35 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.7x national county average)
County Disaster Density Moderate
11/25
35 declarations (0.9x state county average of 40)
Major Disaster Share High
14/25
19 of 35 declarations are major disasters (54%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
15/20
6 different disaster types declared in Indian River County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Indian River 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
54%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
96
Relatively High
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Indian River 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane | Very High | roughly once every 3 years |
| Lightning | Relatively High | an average of 77 times per year |
| Wildfire | Relatively Low | roughly once every 130 years |
| Strong Wind | Relatively High | roughly once every 2 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 2 years |
| Tornado | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 3 years |
| Coastal Flooding | Relatively Moderate | an average of 1 time per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Low | 2 modeled event-days per year |
| Drought | Relatively Low | 23 modeled event-days per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Low | an average of 2.8 times per year |
| Earthquake | Very Low | roughly once every 3,390 years |
| Landslide | Very Low | roughly once every 20 years |
| Hail | Very Low | an average of 1.2 times per year |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Hurricane 22
Fire 5
Freezing 4
Biological 2
Tropical Storm 1
Severe Storm 1
What Hurricane declarations mean here
Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Indian River County's federal record, 63% 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 - 19 54.3%
of all 35 declarations
Emergency - 13 37.1%
of all 35 declarations
Fire Management - 3 8.6%
of all 35 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 | |
| 2023 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 4 | |
| 2019 | 1 | |
| 2017 | 4 | |
| 2008 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 4 | |
| 2001 | 2 | |
| 2000 | 2 | |
| 1999 | 4 | |
| 1998 | 1 | |
Show 3 earlier declaration years
| 1990 | 1 | |
| 1985 | 1 | |
| 1977 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 35 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 35 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4834 | HURRICANE MILTON | DR | Hurricane | 2024-10-11 |
| 3622 | HURRICANE MILTON | EM | Hurricane | 2024-10-07 |
| 4680 | HURRICANE NICOLE | DR | Hurricane | 2022-12-13 |
| 3587 | TROPICAL STORM NICOLE | EM | Tropical Storm | 2022-11-08 |
| 4673 | HURRICANE IAN | DR | Hurricane | 2022-09-29 |
| 3584 | TROPICAL STORM IAN | EM | Hurricane | 2022-09-24 |
| 3533 | HURRICANE ISAIAS | EM | Hurricane | 2020-08-01 |
| 4486 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-25 |
| 3432 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4468 | HURRICANE DORIAN | DR | Hurricane | 2019-10-21 |
| 3419 | HURRICANE DORIAN | EM | Hurricane | 2019-08-30 |
| 4337 | HURRICANE IRMA | DR | Hurricane | 2017-09-10 |
| 3385 | HURRICANE IRMA | EM | Hurricane | 2017-09-05 |
| 4283 | HURRICANE MATTHEW | DR | Hurricane | 2016-10-08 |
| 3377 | HURRICANE MATTHEW | EM | Hurricane | 2016-10-06 |
| 3288 | TROPICAL STORM FAY | EM | Severe Storm | 2008-08-21 |
| 2696 | OKEECHOBEE FIRE COMPLEX | FM | Fire | 2007-06-27 |
| 1609 | HURRICANE WILMA | DR | Hurricane | 2005-10-24 |
| 3220 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-05 |
| 1561 | HURRICANE JEANNE | DR | Hurricane | 2004-09-26 |
Show 15 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1551 | HURRICANE IVAN | DR | Hurricane | 2004-09-16 |
| 1545 | HURRICANE FRANCES | DR | Hurricane | 2004-09-04 |
| 1539 | TROPICAL STORM BONNIE AND HURRICANE CHARLEY | DR | Hurricane | 2004-08-13 |
| 2354 | FL - OKEECHOBEE COMPLEX FIRE | FM | Fire | 2001-02-19 |
| 1359 | SEVERE FREEZE | DR | Freezing | 2001-02-05 |
| 1306 | FL-HURRICANE IRENE-DR-REQ | DR | Hurricane | 1999-10-20 |
| 3150 | TROPICAL STORM IRENE - FLORIDA | EM | Hurricane | 1999-10-15 |
| 1300 | HURRICANE FLOYD MAJOR DISASTER DECLARATIONS | DR | Hurricane | 1999-09-22 |
| 3143 | HURRICANE FLOYD EMERGENCY DECLARATIONS | EM | Hurricane | 1999-09-14 |
| 3139 | FL-FIRES 04/15/99 | EM | Fire | 1999-04-27 |
| 2251 | OKEECHOBEE FIRE COMPLEX | FM | Fire | 1999-04-15 |
| 1223 | EXTREME FIRE HAZARD | DR | Fire | 1998-06-18 |
| 851 | SEVERE FREEZE | DR | Freezing | 1990-01-15 |
| 732 | SEVERE FREEZE | DR | Freezing | 1985-03-18 |
| 526 | SEVERE WINTER WEATHER | DR | Freezing | 1977-01-31 |
Storm Events in Florida
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Indian River County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 5,243 | 17 | 45 | $24.8M |
| Hail | 1,012 | 0 | 0 | $564.6K |
| Heavy Rain | 865 | 2 | 3 | $200.0K |
| Flood | 826 | 9 | 0 | $2.0B |
| Tropical Storm | 767 | 92 | 6 | $4.9B |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
3,349
Total Paid
$67.0M
Avg Per Claim
$20.0K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively High
Score: 95.6/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Moderate
$163.1M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively High
Community Resilience
Relatively High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Hurricane Very High
Lightning Relatively High
Wildfire Relatively Low
Strong Wind Relatively High
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Coastal Flooding Relatively Moderate
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Low
Cold Wave Relatively Low
Earthquake Very Low
Landslide Very Low
Hail Very Low
Winter Weather No Rating
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: Hurricane
Hurricane exposure in the model bundles the three ways a tropical system does harm, which arrive on different timescales and are insured differently: wind, storm surge on the coast, and rainfall flooding that can reach far inland well after landfall.
For Indian River County the two measures on this page point the same way: Hurricane is the county's highest-rated modeled hazard (Very High), and Hurricane 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
Indian River County's closest FEMA peer: Middlesex County, MA
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Indian River County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Indian River County shows 35 FEMA declarations, led by Hurricane.
Similar Major-disaster share
Indian River County: 19 of 35 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Indian River County: NRI composite 95.6 (Relatively High).
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 Indian River County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Indian River 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: 95.6 (Relatively High).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 35. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Indian River County's NFIP claims file (3,349 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 Indian River County?
The most common disaster type in Indian River County is Hurricane, with 22 declarations. Other disaster types include Fire (5), Freezing (4), Biological (2).
How does Indian River County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Florida average?
The typical Florida county has 40.4 FEMA declaration records; Indian River County has 35, or 13% fewer. Against the national county mean of 20.7, this county's total is 69% higher. The comparison is historical and says nothing about the probability of a future event.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Indian River County received?
Indian River County has received 19 major disaster declarations, representing 54% of all 35 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Indian River County filed?
Indian River County has 3,349 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $67.0M in payments, with an average of $20.0K per claim.
What was the worst year for disasters in Indian River County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Indian River County was 1999, with 4 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1977 to 2025.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Indian River County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Indian River County, Florida has an overall risk score of 95.6 out of 100 (Relatively High). On social vulnerability the county rates Relatively High; on community resilience, Relatively High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $163.1M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Indian River County?
The top hazard flagged by FEMA's NRI for Indian River County as of the latest release is Hurricane (risk rating: Very High). Other significant hazards include Lightning (Relatively High) and Wildfire (Relatively Low). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts hurricane here at roughly once every 3 years, drawn from 104 historical events on record. FEMA derives these ratings from historical event frequency, the assets exposed, and the community's vulnerability profile.
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 Indian River County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Florida profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events