FEMA Records
3
Low volume
Alaska · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AK
3 FEMA disaster declarations (2020-2025), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Very Low. Most common hazard: Biological.
- 3
- FEMA declarations
- 2
- Major disasters
- 2
- NRI risk · Very Low
- Biological
- Top hazard
The verdict
The declaration register is comparatively quiet for Ketchikan Gateway Borough. Its 3 federal records sit 58% below the Alaska county mean and above the count for 1% of counties nationally. That historical total does not set the National Risk Index: FEMA's separate loss-and-vulnerability model ranks the county safer than 2%.
- Safer than 2%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Very Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 3
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 11
- 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.
How does Ketchikan Gateway Borough compare?
Ketchikan Gateway Borough vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time
3 1st percentile higher than 1% 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 · 2026-08-03
Ketchikan Gateway Borough's FEMA Risk Index score
FEMA National Risk Index composite score vs. the Alaska county average
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Ketchikan Gateway Borough is led by Riverine Flooding (about $722.5K Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Very Low), while Landslide carries the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Low). 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 Ketchikan Gateway Borough's hazard record show?
Declaration frequency
Ketchikan Gateway Borough's federal file is quiet on both comparisons: 3 declarations, 58% below the Alaska county mean. Of those, 2 use the Major Disaster code. The register covers 5 years and averages 0.6 entries a year. Biological is the most frequent incident label at 2. A small federal count does not include undeclared local events and is not evidence of zero hazard exposure.
FEMA National Risk Index
This county sits at the very bottom of FEMA's National Risk Index nationally, a composite score of 1.7/100 (rated Very Low). Projected losses are minimal, Expected Annual Loss reads Very Low (roughly $1.9M in annualized losses), and the county's exposure is shaped by a Relatively Low social-vulnerability profile and Relatively High community resilience. Even the county's top-rated hazard, Landslide, only reaches Relatively Low on FEMA's scale, none of the 18 modeled hazards stand out here. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 10 times per year here.
Reading the federal records together
This county has a small entry in FEMA's NFIP paid-claims table: 11 claims and $129.5K 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 Alaska county averages 7.2 federal declaration records, while Ketchikan Gateway Borough has 3. The gap is 58% 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.
29 /100
Historical Activity Index
Moderate historical activity
Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AK · 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
2/30
3 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (0.1x national county average)
County Disaster Density Low
5/25
3 declarations (0.4x state county average of 7)
Major Disaster Share High
17/25
2 of 3 declarations are major disasters (67%)
Hazard Diversity Moderate
5/20
2 different disaster types declared in Ketchikan Gateway Borough
Historical Declaration Activity
Activity Band
Low
vs. Alaska Avg
-58%
State avg: 7.2
vs. National Avg
-86%
National avg: 20.7
Avg Per Year
0.6
Over 5 years
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Ketchikan Gateway Borough
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
2
Very Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Ketchikan Gateway Borough?
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Landslide | Relatively Low | an average of 10 times per year |
| Avalanche | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 30 years |
| Volcanic Activity | Very Low | roughly once every 3,333 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 9.2 times per year |
| Tsunami | Very Low | roughly once every 3 years |
| Earthquake | Very Low | roughly once every 144 years |
| Coastal Flooding | Very Low | roughly once every 83 years |
| Ice Storm | Very Low | roughly once every 67 years |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 90,684 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Very Low | roughly once every 100 years |
| Lightning | Very Low | an average of 8 times per year |
| Tornado | Very Low | roughly once every 191,252 years |
| Drought | No Rating | 5.8 modeled event-days per year |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Biological 2
Mud/Landslide 1
What Biological declarations mean here
Biological is the most frequent declaration type on Ketchikan Gateway Borough's record, 67% of its declarations. In practice this category is dominated by the COVID-19 declarations of 2020, which were issued across every US state and territory rather than in response to any local hazard event.
This has a direct consequence for how Ketchikan Gateway Borough's number should be read. Because those declarations reached essentially every county in the country, they raise every county's total by a similar amount and tell you nothing about local hazard exposure. A county whose record is led by Biological declarations is, in most cases, a county with a genuinely quiet weather-hazard history, the pandemic records are simply the largest thing in an otherwise short list.
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 - 2 66.7%
of all 3 declarations
Emergency - 1 33.3%
of all 3 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 3 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 3 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4846 | LANDSLIDES | DR | Mud/Landslide | 2024-11-13 |
| 4533 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-04-09 |
| 3446 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
Storm Events in Alaska
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Ketchikan Gateway Borough.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High Wind | 709 | 0 | 1 | $8.4M |
| Blizzard | 524 | 0 | 0 | $60.0K |
| Heavy Snow | 439 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| Winter Storm | 385 | 0 | 0 | $200.0K |
| Flood | 182 | 0 | 0 | $81.9M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
11
Total Paid
$129.5K
Avg Per Claim
$11.8K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Very Low
Score: 1.7/100
Expected Annual Loss
Very Low
$1.9M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively Low
Community Resilience
Relatively High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Landslide Relatively Low
Avalanche Relatively Moderate
Volcanic Activity Very Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Tsunami Very Low
Earthquake Very Low
Coastal Flooding Very Low
Ice Storm Very Low
Wildfire Very Low
Riverine Flooding Very Low
Lightning Very Low
Tornado Very Low
Cold Wave No Rating
Drought No Rating
Hail No Rating
Strong Wind 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: Landslide
Landslide risk is a function of slope, soil and water, so it is usually a SECOND-ORDER hazard: it is triggered by the rainfall, snowmelt, wildfire burn scars or seismic shaking that came first. That is why a county can carry high landslide exposure whose realized damage is recorded under a flood or storm declaration instead.
Worth noting for Ketchikan Gateway Borough: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Landslide carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively Low), while the county's declaration history is led by Biological. 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
Ketchikan Gateway Borough's closest FEMA peer: Kalawao County, HI
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Ketchikan Gateway Borough. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Ketchikan Gateway Borough shows 3 FEMA declarations, led by Biological.
Similar Major-disaster share
Ketchikan Gateway Borough: 2 of 3 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Ketchikan Gateway Borough: NRI composite 1.7 (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 Ketchikan Gateway Borough - capture-dated entries only.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
FEMA's National Risk Index flags Landslide as the top modeled exposure here (Relatively Low); 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).
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common disaster type in Ketchikan Gateway Borough?
The most common disaster type in Ketchikan Gateway Borough is Biological, with 2 declarations. Other disaster types include Mud/Landslide (1).
How does Ketchikan Gateway Borough's FEMA declaration record compare with the Alaska average?
The typical Alaska county has 7.2 FEMA declaration records; Ketchikan Gateway Borough has 3, or 58% fewer. Against the national county mean of 20.7, this county's total is 86% lower. The comparison is historical and says nothing about the probability of a future event.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Ketchikan Gateway Borough received?
Ketchikan Gateway Borough has received 2 major disaster declarations, representing 67% of all 3 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Ketchikan Gateway Borough filed?
Ketchikan Gateway Borough has 11 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $129.5K in payments, with an average of $11.8K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Ketchikan Gateway Borough?
No. In Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Landslide has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Low), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $722.5K. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Ketchikan Gateway Borough?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Ketchikan Gateway Borough was 2020, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 2020 to 2025.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Ketchikan Gateway Borough?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska has an overall risk score of 1.7 out of 100 (Very Low). Social vulnerability here rates Relatively Low, while community resilience comes in at Relatively High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Very Low, representing $1.9M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Ketchikan Gateway Borough?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Ketchikan Gateway Borough as of the latest release is Landslide (risk rating: Relatively Low). Other significant hazards include Avalanche (Relatively Moderate) and Volcanic Activity (Very Low). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts landslide here at an average of 10 times per year. 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.
What this means for Ketchikan Gateway Borough
Against a Alaska county mean of 7 declarations, Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AK records 3, or 58% fewer. PlainHazard classifies that historical total as low activity.
- Major Disaster is the largest group (2 of 3) in a declaration history that remains below its state benchmark; frequency here is not a forecast. Alaska overview
- Nationally the county exceeds 1% of recorded county totals, but its own Alaska benchmark is higher. The ranking keeps those two contexts separate. Most-disaster rankings
- A short NFIP claims file cannot establish low flood exposure; the data guide explains the limits of each federal measure. Disaster-data guide
A below-average federal record is not a safety guarantee. Use National Weather Service alerts and local emergency-management notices for present conditions, not this historical comparison.
PlainHazard derives this profile from FEMA's Disaster Declarations Summaries and National Risk Index data. The declaration comparison covers 3,266 U.S. counties and county equivalents in this database, refreshed as of 2026-08-03. Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
All federal data sources used on this page
- FEMA OpenFEMA, Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 - all federally-declared disasters for this county. fema.gov/openfema/disaster-declarations
- FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) - per-county per-hazard risk ratings and expected annual loss. hazards.fema.gov/nri
- NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database - state-level storm/severe-weather event records, 2015-2025. ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents
Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainHazard Editorial
Verify with FEMA → · Verify with FEMA NRI → · Verify with NOAA →
Every figure on PlainHazard is rendered directly from FEMA federal disaster data, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or national statistics report, the data & editorial changelog, or report a data error.