FEMA Records
25
High volume
South Carolina · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Lexington County, SC
25 FEMA disaster declarations (1977-2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Hurricane.
- 25
- FEMA declarations
- 10
- Major disasters
- 91
- NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
- Hurricane
- Top hazard
The verdict
Lexington County has a nationally busy FEMA history: 25 declarations, more than 71% of counties in this registry. But the state comparison tempers that reading: the total is 2% below the South Carolina county mean. FEMA's separate National Risk Index places the county in the riskiest 9%; that score models loss and vulnerability rather than counting declarations.
- Riskiest 9%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Moderate
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 25
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 693
- 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 45063 · Lexington County 25 declarations · rank 939/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-LIGHT · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-MID · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-BELOW
- DECL-HEAVY 25
- MAJOR-LIGHT 40%
- RANK-LOWER #939
- PHOTO-FINISH Jefferson
- NRI-MID 91
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Hurricane
- VS-ST-BELOW -2%
Nearest declaration peer: Jefferson, AR (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · South Carolina state profile
Lexington County among high-volume declaration counties
FEMA declaration records among Lexington County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Benton · near 25
Benton · near
25 declarations
- Jefferson · near 25
Jefferson · near
25 declarations
- Lafayette · near 25
Lafayette · near
25 declarations
- Lexington · this county 25
Lexington · this county
25 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Lexington County carries 25 FEMA declaration records, ranked 939 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Where Lexington County ranks in the national declaration registry
Lexington County vs. high-volume counties in this registry
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Lexington County
25 Top 29% higher than 71% 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
Lexington County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Lexington County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $46.9M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Tornado 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 Lexington County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
FEMA's NFIP table contains a substantial paid-claim history for this county: 693 claims and $14.2M 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 $20.5K. NFIP totals exclude uninsured flood losses and do not measure how many properties currently carry a policy.
Start with the state benchmark: a South Carolina county averages 25.6 federal declaration records, while Lexington County has 25. The gap is 2% 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 90.9/100 (Relatively Moderate). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Moderate (roughly $108.2M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability reads Relatively Low and community resilience Relatively Moderate, both critical modifiers of realized harm here. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Tornado stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at roughly once every 2 years here, based on 44 historical events on record.
60 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Lexington County, SC · 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
18/30
25 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.2x national county average)
County Disaster Density Moderate
12/25
25 declarations (1.0x state county average of 26)
Major Disaster Share Moderate
10/25
10 of 25 declarations are major disasters (40%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
20/20
8 different disaster types declared in Lexington County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Lexington 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
40%
Mixed major share
NRI risk score
91
Relatively Moderate
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Lexington 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Tornado | Relatively High | roughly once every 2 years |
| Ice Storm | Very High | an average of 1.5 times per year |
| Strong Wind | Relatively High | an average of 5.7 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Moderate | 4.3 modeled event-days per year |
| Lightning | Relatively High | an average of 60 times per year |
| Hurricane | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 6 years |
| Earthquake | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 305 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Moderate | an average of 1.4 times per year |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | an average of 3.6 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 5 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Moderate | an average of 1.8 times per year |
| Landslide | Relatively Low | roughly once every 4 years |
| Wildfire | Relatively Low | roughly once every 1,983 years |
| Drought | Relatively Low | 19 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
Hurricane 13
Severe Ice Storm 3
Tropical Storm 2
Biological 2
Severe Storm 2
Winter Storm 1
Flood 1
Drought 1
What Hurricane declarations mean here
Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Lexington County's federal record, 52% 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).
Emergency - 15 60.0%
of all 25 declarations
Major Disaster - 10 40.0%
of all 25 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 3 | |
| 2023 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2019 | 1 | |
| 2018 | 2 | |
| 2017 | 2 | |
| 2016 | 2 | |
| 2014 | 2 | |
| 2005 | 2 | |
| 2004 | 1 | |
| 2000 | 1 | |
| 1999 | 2 | |
| 1977 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 25 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 25 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3632 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Winter Storm | 2026-01-23 |
| 4829 | HURRICANE HELENE | DR | Hurricane | 2024-09-29 |
| 3619 | HURRICANE HELENE | EM | Tropical Storm | 2024-09-26 |
| 3606 | HURRICANE DEBBY | EM | Tropical Storm | 2024-08-05 |
| 3597 | HURRICANE IDALIA | EM | Hurricane | 2023-08-31 |
| 4677 | HURRICANE IAN | DR | Hurricane | 2022-11-21 |
| 3585 | HURRICANE IAN | EM | Hurricane | 2022-09-29 |
| 4492 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-27 |
| 3470 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 3421 | HURRICANE DORIAN | EM | Hurricane | 2019-09-01 |
| 3400 | HURRICANE FLORENCE | EM | Hurricane | 2018-09-10 |
| 4346 | HURRICANE IRMA | DR | Hurricane | 2017-10-16 |
| 3386 | HURRICANE IRMA | EM | Hurricane | 2017-09-07 |
| 3378 | HURRICANE MATTHEW | EM | Hurricane | 2016-10-06 |
| 4241 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2015-10-05 |
| 3373 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | EM | Severe Storm | 2015-10-03 |
| 4166 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2014-03-12 |
| 3369 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Severe Ice Storm | 2014-02-12 |
| 3233 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-10 |
| 1566 | TROPICAL STORM FRANCES | DR | Hurricane | 2004-10-07 |
Show 5 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1509 | SEVERE ICE STORM | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2004-02-13 |
| 1313 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR | Severe Storm | 2000-01-31 |
| 1299 | HURRICANE FLOYD MAJOR DISASTER DECLARATIONS | DR | Hurricane | 1999-09-21 |
| 3145 | HURRICANE FLOYD EMERGENCY DECLARATIONS | EM | Hurricane | 1999-09-15 |
| 3047 | DROUGHT | EM | Drought | 1977-08-04 |
Storm Events in South Carolina
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Lexington County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 5,845 | 11 | 40 | $11.4M |
| Hail | 1,207 | 0 | 0 | $25.1M |
| Flash Flood | 954 | 20 | 35 | $150.4M |
| Strong Wind | 395 | 4 | 13 | $711.8K |
| Tornado | 320 | 9 | 110 | $127.1M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
693
Total Paid
$14.2M
Avg Per Claim
$20.5K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Moderate
Score: 90.9/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Moderate
$108.2M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively Low
Community Resilience
Relatively Moderate
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Tornado Relatively High
Ice Storm Very High
Strong Wind Relatively High
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively High
Hurricane Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Moderate
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate
Hail Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Moderate
Winter Weather Relatively Moderate
Landslide Relatively Low
Wildfire Relatively Low
Drought Relatively 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: Tornado
Tornado exposure is the most spatially concentrated in the model: total destruction along a narrow corridor with intact property either side. County-level averages therefore understate severity badly for anyone actually in the path, and overstate it for everyone else.
Worth noting for Lexington County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Tornado carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively High), while the county's declaration history is led by Hurricane. 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
Lexington County's closest FEMA peer: Douglas County, NV
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Lexington County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Lexington County shows 25 FEMA declarations, led by Hurricane.
Similar Major-disaster share
Lexington County: 10 of 25 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Lexington County: NRI composite 90.9 (Relatively Moderate).
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 Lexington County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Lexington 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: 90.9 (Relatively Moderate).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 25. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Lexington County's NFIP claims file (693 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 Lexington County?
The most common disaster type in Lexington County is Hurricane, with 13 declarations. Other disaster types include Severe Ice Storm (3), Tropical Storm (2), Biological (2).
How does Lexington County's FEMA declaration record compare with the South Carolina average?
The typical South Carolina county has 25.6 FEMA declaration records; Lexington County has 25, or 2% fewer. Against the national county mean of 20.7, this county's total is 21% higher. The comparison is historical and says nothing about the probability of a future event.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Lexington County received?
Lexington County has received 10 major disaster declarations, representing 40% of all 25 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Lexington County filed?
Lexington County has 693 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $14.2M in payments, with an average of $20.5K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Lexington County?
No. In Lexington County, Tornado has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $46.9M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Lexington County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Lexington County was 2024, with 3 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1977 to 2026.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Lexington County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Lexington County, South Carolina has an overall risk score of 90.9 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively Low and community resilience is Relatively Moderate. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $108.2M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Lexington County?
FEMA's NRI data points to Lexington County is Tornado (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Ice Storm (Very High) and Strong Wind (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts tornado here at roughly once every 2 years, drawn from 44 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 Lexington County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · South Carolina profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events