FEMA Records
12
Low volume
Michigan · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Kalamazoo County, MI
12 FEMA disaster declarations (1965-2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Snowstorm.
- 12
- FEMA declarations
- 6
- Major disasters
- 82
- NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
- Snowstorm
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Kalamazoo County. Its 12 FEMA declarations are 20% above the Michigan county mean and exceed the count for 14% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 18%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 18%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Moderate
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 12
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 291
- 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 26077 · Kalamazoo County 12 declarations · rank 2727/3,266
DECL-MID · MAJOR-MID · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-MID · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-MID 12
- MAJOR-MID 50%
- RANK-LOWER #2,727
- PHOTO-FINISH Johnson
- NRI-MID 82
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Snowstorm
- VS-ST-ABOVE +20%
Nearest declaration peer: Johnson, KS (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Michigan state profile
Kalamazoo County among counties with fewer federal records
FEMA declaration records among Kalamazoo County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Crane · near 12
Crane · near
12 declarations
- Johnson · near 12
Johnson · near
12 declarations
- Kalamazoo · this county 12
Kalamazoo · this county
12 declarations
- Seward · near 12
Seward · near
12 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Kalamazoo County carries 12 FEMA declaration records, ranked 2727 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Kalamazoo County versus quieter counties in this dataset
Kalamazoo County among lower-declaration counties nationally
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Kalamazoo County
12 14th percentile higher than 14% 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
Kalamazoo County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Kalamazoo County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $27.4M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Hail 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 Kalamazoo County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 291 paid claims, totaling $5.1M. PlainHazard uses 50-499 claims for this descriptive band; FEMA does not publish it as a safety or coverage category. The $17.7K 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. Kalamazoo County's 12 federal records stand 20% above the Michigan county mean of 10.0. 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 81.7/100 (Relatively Moderate). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Moderate (roughly $55.1M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability reads Very Low and community resilience Very High, both critical modifiers of realized harm here. 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 2.2 times per year here, based on 85 historical events on record.
52 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Kalamazoo County, MI · 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) Moderate
9/30
12 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (0.6x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
15/25
12 declarations (1.2x state county average of 10)
Major Disaster Share High
13/25
6 of 12 declarations are major disasters (50%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
15/20
6 different disaster types declared in Kalamazoo County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Kalamazoo 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
50%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
82
Relatively Moderate
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Kalamazoo 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 2.2 times per year |
| Tornado | Relatively High | roughly once every 4 years |
| Strong Wind | Relatively High | an average of 4.3 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 2 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Moderate | an average of 25 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Moderate | an average of 1.8 times per year |
| Ice Storm | Relatively Moderate | an average of 1.4 times per year |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | roughly once every 978 years |
| Landslide | Relatively Low | roughly once every 6 years |
| Lightning | Relatively Moderate | an average of 36 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Low | 2.7 modeled event-days per year |
| Hurricane | Very Low | roughly once every 58 years |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 67,448 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Snowstorm 4
Flood 2
Biological 2
Tornado 2
Hurricane 1
Other 1
What Snowstorm declarations mean here
Snowstorm is the most frequent declaration type on Kalamazoo County's record, 33% of its declarations. Snow-related declarations work on a narrower basis than most other hazards: they are generally issued to reimburse the cost of snow removal and emergency protective measures, rather than to repair destroyed property.
The qualifying test is unusual too. FEMA assesses snowfall against record levels for the affected area, so the same storm total can qualify in a county where it is historically extreme and not qualify a few hundred miles north where it is an ordinary winter. A low snowstorm declaration count is therefore not evidence of mild winters.
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 - 6 50.0%
of all 12 declarations
Emergency - 6 50.0%
of all 12 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2003 | 1 | |
| 2001 | 1 | |
| 1999 | 1 | |
| 1980 | 1 | |
| 1978 | 1 | |
| 1975 | 1 | |
| 1972 | 1 | |
| 1965 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 12 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 12 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4925 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2026-06-30 |
| 4494 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-27 |
| 3455 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 3225 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-07 |
| 3189 | POWER OUTAGE | EM | Other | 2003-09-23 |
| 3160 | SNOW | EM | Snowstorm | 2001-01-10 |
| 3137 | MI - SEVERE WEATHER 1/2 /99 | EM | Snowstorm | 1999-01-27 |
| 621 | SEVERE STORMS & TORNADOES | DR | Tornado | 1980-05-16 |
| 3057 | BLIZZARDS & SNOWSTORMS | EM | Snowstorm | 1978-01-27 |
| 465 | SEVERE STORMS, HIGH WINDS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1975-04-26 |
| 330 | SEVERE STORM & FREEZING | DR | Snowstorm | 1972-04-05 |
| 190 | TORNADOES & SEVERE STORMS | DR | Tornado | 1965-04-14 |
Storm Events in Michigan
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Kalamazoo County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 3,010 | 10 | 18 | $173.8M |
| Winter Storm | 1,486 | 3 | 11 | $41.8M |
| Winter Weather | 1,254 | 21 | 38 | $892.0K |
| Hail | 962 | 0 | 0 | $77.1M |
| High Wind | 389 | 3 | 2 | $668.9M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
291
Total Paid
$5.1M
Avg Per Claim
$17.7K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Moderate
Score: 81.7/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Moderate
$55.1M/year
Social Vulnerability
Very Low
Community Resilience
Very High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Hail Relatively High
Tornado Relatively High
Strong Wind Relatively High
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate
Winter Weather Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Moderate
Ice Storm Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Landslide Relatively Low
Lightning Relatively Moderate
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Hurricane Very Low
Wildfire Very Low
Drought 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: 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.
Worth noting for Kalamazoo County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Hail carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively High), while the county's declaration history is led by Snowstorm. 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
Kalamazoo County's closest FEMA peer: DeSoto County, FL
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Kalamazoo County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Similar modeled NRI score
Kalamazoo County: NRI composite 81.7 (Relatively Moderate).
Similar Major-disaster share
Kalamazoo County: 6 of 12 of its declarations are Major.
Closest declaration profiles
Kalamazoo County shows 12 FEMA declarations, led by Snowstorm.
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 Kalamazoo County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Kalamazoo 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: 81.7 (Relatively Moderate).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 12. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Kalamazoo County's NFIP claims file (291 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 Kalamazoo County?
The most common disaster type in Kalamazoo County is Snowstorm, with 4 declarations. Other disaster types include Flood (2), Biological (2), Tornado (2).
How does Kalamazoo County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Michigan average?
FEMA lists 12 declaration records for Kalamazoo County. That is 20% above the Michigan county mean of 10.0. Its count is also 42% below 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 Kalamazoo County received?
Kalamazoo County has received 6 major disaster declarations, representing 50% of all 12 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Kalamazoo County filed?
Kalamazoo County has 291 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $5.1M in payments, with an average of $17.7K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Kalamazoo County?
No. In Kalamazoo County, Hail has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $27.4M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Kalamazoo County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Kalamazoo County was 2020, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1965 to 2026.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Kalamazoo County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Kalamazoo County, Michigan has an overall risk score of 81.7 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). Social vulnerability here rates Very Low, while community resilience comes in at Very High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $55.1M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Kalamazoo County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Kalamazoo County as of the latest release is Hail (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Tornado (Relatively High) and Strong Wind (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts hail here at an average of 2.2 times per year, drawn from 85 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 Kalamazoo County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Michigan profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events