FEMA Records
6
Low volume
Idaho · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Jefferson County, ID
6 FEMA disaster declarations (1976-2020), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Very Low. Most common hazard: Flood.
- 6
- FEMA declarations
- 4
- Major disasters
- 40
- NRI risk · Very Low
- Flood
- Top hazard
The verdict
Start with the local benchmark for Jefferson County: 6 FEMA declaration records are 28% below the Idaho county mean, even though the count is higher than 3% of counties in the national registry. On FEMA's distinct National Risk Index model, which combines expected loss with vulnerability and resilience, the county ranks safer than 40%.
- Safer than 40%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Very Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 6
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 18
- 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 16051 · Jefferson County 6 declarations · rank 3165/3,266
DECL-LIGHT · MAJOR-MID · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-LOW · ACT-MODERATE · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-BELOW
- DECL-LIGHT 6
- MAJOR-MID 67%
- RANK-LOWER #3,165
- PHOTO-FINISH Summit
- NRI-LOW Very Low
- ACT-MODERATE Moderate
- TYPE-LEAD Flood
- VS-ST-BELOW -28%
Nearest declaration peer: Summit, CO (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Idaho state profile
Jefferson County among counties with fewer federal records
FEMA declaration records among Jefferson County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Jefferson · this county 6
Jefferson · this county
6 declarations
- Lake · near 6
Lake · near
6 declarations
- Lander · near 6
Lander · near
6 declarations
- Summit · near 6
Summit · near
6 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Jefferson County carries 6 FEMA declaration records, ranked 3165 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Jefferson County versus quieter counties in this dataset
Jefferson County among lower-declaration counties nationally
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Jefferson County
6 3rd percentile higher than 3% 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
Jefferson County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Jefferson County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $6.0M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Low), while Winter Weather carries the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Moderate). 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 Jefferson County's hazard record show?
FEMA National Risk Index
FEMA's data shows an elevated National Risk Index composite of 40.1/100 for this county (Very Low rating). Expected Annual Loss comes in at Relatively Low (roughly $17.2M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability (Very Low) and community resilience (Relatively Low) both factor into how that raw exposure plays out on the ground. Among the 18 modeled hazards, Winter Weather carries the county's highest rating, a mid-range Relatively Moderate. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 14 times per year here, based on 260 historical events on record.
Reading the federal records together
This county has a small entry in FEMA's NFIP paid-claims table: 18 claims and $115.7K 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.
Start with the state benchmark: a Idaho county averages 8.3 federal declaration records, while Jefferson County has 6. The gap is 28% 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.
40 /100
Historical Activity Index
Moderate historical activity
Jefferson County, ID · 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) Low
4/30
6 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (0.3x national county average)
County Disaster Density Moderate
9/25
6 declarations (0.7x state county average of 8)
Major Disaster Share High
17/25
4 of 6 declarations are major disasters (67%)
Hazard Diversity High
10/20
4 different disaster types declared in Jefferson County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Jefferson 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
67%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
40
Very Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Jefferson 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 Moderate | an average of 14 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Moderate | an average of 2.6 times per year |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | roughly once every 84 years |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Moderate | 1.9 modeled event-days per year |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 391 years |
| Volcanic Activity | Very Low | roughly once every 2,000 years |
| Lightning | Relatively Low | an average of 31 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Low | roughly once every 3 years |
| Landslide | Very Low | roughly once every 5 years |
| Drought | Very Low | 59 modeled event-days per year |
| Hail | Very Low | roughly once every 3 years |
| Strong Wind | Very Low | roughly once every 1 years |
| Ice Storm | Very Low | roughly once every 67 years |
| Tornado | Very Low | roughly once every 8 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
Biological 2
Flood 2
Hurricane 1
Severe Storm 1
What Flood declarations mean here
Flood is the most frequent declaration type on Jefferson County's record, 33% of its declarations. Federal flood declarations cover two mechanisms that behave very differently: riverine flooding, which builds over days as a watershed drains and is usually forecast well in advance, and flash flooding, which can arrive in under an hour from rainfall that fell somewhere upstream.
Flood is also the one hazard class where a second federal dataset exists for the same events. The National Flood Insurance Program records what was actually paid on insured losses, so it measures a narrower thing than the declaration count: uninsured damage, and flooding outside mapped special flood hazard areas, never enters it. Reading the two together is more informative than either alone.
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 - 4 66.7%
of all 6 declarations
Emergency - 2 33.3%
of all 6 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2017 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 1997 | 1 | |
| 1976 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 6 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 6 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4534 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-04-09 |
| 3467 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4310 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2017-04-21 |
| 3244 | HURRICANE KATRINA | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-13 |
| 1177 | SEVERE STORMS, SNOWMELT, LAND/MUD SLIDES, FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1997-06-13 |
| 505 | DAM COLLAPSE, FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1976-06-06 |
Storm Events in Idaho
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Jefferson County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Snow | 1,495 | 1 | 13 | $100.9M |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 1,087 | 9 | 26 | $3.6M |
| Winter Storm | 492 | 4 | 15 | $1.0M |
| High Wind | 396 | 4 | 6 | $10.6M |
| Winter Weather | 297 | 10 | 15 | $1.7M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
18
Total Paid
$115.7K
Avg Per Claim
$6.4K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Very Low
Score: 40.1/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$17.2M/year
Social Vulnerability
Very Low
Community Resilience
Relatively Low
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Winter Weather Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Wildfire Very Low
Volcanic Activity Very Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Riverine Flooding Relatively Low
Landslide Very Low
Drought Very Low
Hail Very Low
Strong Wind Very Low
Ice Storm Very Low
Tornado 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 Jefferson County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Winter Weather carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively Moderate), while the county's declaration history is led by Flood. 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
Jefferson County's closest FEMA peer: Hooker County, NE
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Jefferson County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Jefferson County shows 6 FEMA declarations, led by Flood.
Similar Major-disaster share
Jefferson County: 4 of 6 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Jefferson County: NRI composite 40.1 (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 Jefferson County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Jefferson 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: 40.1 (Very Low).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 6. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
FEMA's National Risk Index flags Winter Weather as the top modeled exposure here (Relatively Moderate); the guide explains how that model differs from declaration counts.
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 Jefferson County?
The most common disaster type in Jefferson County is Flood, with 2 declarations. Other disaster types include Biological (2), Hurricane (1), Severe Storm (1).
How does Jefferson County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Idaho average?
The typical Idaho county has 8.3 FEMA declaration records; Jefferson County has 6, or 28% fewer. Against the national county mean of 20.7, this county's total is 71% lower. The comparison is historical and says nothing about the probability of a future event.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Jefferson County received?
Jefferson County has received 4 major disaster declarations, representing 67% of all 6 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Jefferson County filed?
Jefferson County has 18 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $115.7K in payments, with an average of $6.4K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Jefferson County?
No. In Jefferson County, Winter Weather has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Moderate), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $6.0M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Jefferson County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Jefferson County was 2020, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1976 to 2020.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Jefferson County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Jefferson County, Idaho has an overall risk score of 40.1 out of 100 (Very Low). Social vulnerability here rates Very Low, while community resilience comes in at Relatively Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $17.2M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Jefferson County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Jefferson County is Winter Weather (risk rating: Relatively Moderate). Other significant hazards include Cold Wave (Relatively Moderate) and Earthquake (Relatively Low). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts winter weather here at an average of 14 times per year, drawn from 260 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 Jefferson County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Idaho profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events