FEMA Records
23
Above median
Pennsylvania · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Luzerne County, PA
23 FEMA disaster declarations (1972-2021), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Hurricane.
- 23
- FEMA declarations
- 16
- Major disasters
- 92
- NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
- Hurricane
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Luzerne County. Its 23 FEMA declarations are 24% above the Pennsylvania county mean and exceed the count for 62% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 8%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 8%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Moderate
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 23
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 4,147
- 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 42079 · Luzerne County 23 declarations · rank 1212/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-MID · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-HEAVY 23
- MAJOR-MID 70%
- RANK-LOWER #1,212
- PHOTO-FINISH Roanoke
- NRI-MID 92
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Hurricane
- VS-ST-ABOVE +24%
Nearest declaration peer: Roanoke, VA (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Pennsylvania state profile
Luzerne County in the declaration-count neighbourhood
FEMA declaration records among Luzerne County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Amherst · near 23
Amherst · near
23 declarations
- Luzerne · this county 23
Luzerne · this county
23 declarations
- Roanoke · near 23
Roanoke · near
23 declarations
- Vance · near 23
Vance · near
23 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Luzerne County carries 23 FEMA declaration records, ranked 1212 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
How Luzerne County's FEMA declaration count compares nationally
Luzerne County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Luzerne County
23 Top 38% higher than 62% 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
Luzerne County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Luzerne County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $63.8M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Winter Weather carries the highest National Risk Index rating (Very 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 Luzerne County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
FEMA's NFIP table contains a substantial paid-claim history for this county: 4,147 claims and $93.6M 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 $22.6K. NFIP totals exclude uninsured flood losses and do not measure how many properties currently carry a policy.
The declaration register points in the busier direction. Luzerne County's 23 federal records stand 24% above the Pennsylvania county mean of 18.6. 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 91.6/100 (Relatively Moderate). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Moderate (roughly $88.0M 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, Winter Weather stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Very High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 13 times per year here, based on 253 historical events on record.
62 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Luzerne County, PA · 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
17/30
23 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.1x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
15/25
23 declarations (1.2x state county average of 19)
Major Disaster Share High
17/25
16 of 23 declarations are major disasters (70%)
Hazard Diversity High
13/20
5 different disaster types declared in Luzerne County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Luzerne 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
70%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
92
Relatively Moderate
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Luzerne 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 | Very High | an average of 13 times per year |
| Lightning | Relatively High | an average of 33 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively High | an average of 2.5 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively High | an average of 2.8 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Moderate | 2.5 modeled event-days per year |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | roughly once every 1,284 years |
| Hurricane | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 27 years |
| Ice Storm | Relatively High | roughly once every 1 years |
| Tornado | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 3 years |
| Strong Wind | Relatively Moderate | an average of 3.3 times per year |
| Landslide | Relatively Low | roughly once every 1 years |
| Avalanche | Very Low | roughly once every 100 years |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 4,071 years |
| Hail | Relatively Low | an average of 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 7
Flood 6
Severe Storm 5
Snowstorm 3
Biological 2
What Hurricane declarations mean here
Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Luzerne County's federal record, 30% 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 - 16 69.6%
of all 23 declarations
Emergency - 7 30.4%
of all 23 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2013 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 4 | |
| 2007 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 2 | |
| 2004 | 2 | |
| 1996 | 2 | |
| 1994 | 1 | |
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1986 | 1 | |
| 1977 | 2 | |
| 1975 | 1 | |
| 1972 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 23 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 23 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4618 | REMNANTS OF HURRICANE IDA | DR | Hurricane | 2021-09-10 |
| 4506 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-30 |
| 3441 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 3356 | HURRICANE SANDY | EM | Hurricane | 2012-10-29 |
| 4030 | TROPICAL STORM LEE | DR | Flood | 2011-09-12 |
| 3340 | REMNANTS OF TROPICAL STORM LEE | EM | Flood | 2011-09-08 |
| 4025 | HURRICANE IRENE | DR | Hurricane | 2011-09-03 |
| 3339 | HURRICANE IRENE | EM | Hurricane | 2011-08-29 |
| 1684 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2007-02-23 |
| 1649 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2006-06-30 |
| 3235 | HURRICANE KATRINA | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-10 |
| 1587 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2005-04-14 |
| 1557 | TROPICAL DEPRESSION IVAN | DR | Hurricane | 2004-09-19 |
| 1555 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING ASSOCIATED WITH TROPICAL DEPRESSION FRANCES | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-09-19 |
| 1093 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1996-01-21 |
| 1085 | BLIZZARD OF 96 | DR | Snowstorm | 1996-01-13 |
| 1015 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR | Severe Storm | 1994-03-10 |
| 3105 | SEVERE SNOWFALL & WINTER STORM | EM | Snowstorm | 1993-03-16 |
| 745 | HURRICANE GLORIA | DR | Hurricane | 1985-10-08 |
| 3026 | SNOWSTORMS | EM | Snowstorm | 1977-01-29 |
Show 3 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 523 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1976-10-20 |
| 485 | SEVERE STORMS, HEAVY RAINS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1975-09-26 |
| 340 | TROPICAL STORM AGNES | DR | Flood | 1972-06-23 |
Storm Events in Pennsylvania
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Luzerne County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 9,976 | 18 | 114 | $115.5M |
| Flash Flood | 2,288 | 23 | 8 | $463.2M |
| Winter Weather | 1,670 | 23 | 268 | $566.0K |
| Hail | 1,400 | 0 | 0 | $2.6M |
| Winter Storm | 881 | 14 | 17 | $2.9M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
4,147
Total Paid
$93.6M
Avg Per Claim
$22.6K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Moderate
Score: 91.6/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Moderate
$88.0M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively High
Community Resilience
Relatively High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Winter Weather Very High
Lightning Relatively High
Riverine Flooding Relatively High
Cold Wave Relatively High
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Hurricane Relatively Moderate
Ice Storm Relatively High
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Landslide Relatively Low
Avalanche Very Low
Wildfire Very Low
Hail Relatively 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: 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 Luzerne County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Winter Weather carries the highest modeled rating (Very 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
Luzerne County's closest FEMA peer: Marion County, KY
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Luzerne County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Luzerne County shows 23 FEMA declarations, led by Hurricane.
Similar Major-disaster share
Luzerne County: 16 of 23 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Luzerne County: NRI composite 91.6 (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 Luzerne County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Luzerne 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: 91.6 (Relatively Moderate).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 23. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Luzerne County's NFIP claims file (4,147 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 Luzerne County?
The most common disaster type in Luzerne County is Hurricane, with 7 declarations. Other disaster types include Flood (6), Severe Storm (5), Snowstorm (3).
How does Luzerne County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Pennsylvania average?
FEMA lists 23 declaration records for Luzerne County. That is 24% above the Pennsylvania county mean of 18.6. Its count is also 11% above 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 Luzerne County received?
Luzerne County has received 16 major disaster declarations, representing 70% of all 23 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Luzerne County filed?
Luzerne County has 4,147 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $93.6M in payments, with an average of $22.6K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Luzerne County?
No. In Luzerne County, Winter Weather has the highest National Risk Index rating (Very High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $63.8M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Luzerne County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Luzerne County was 2011, with 4 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1972 to 2021.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Luzerne County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania has an overall risk score of 91.6 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively High and community resilience is Relatively High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Moderate, representing $88.0M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Luzerne County?
The top hazard flagged by FEMA's NRI for Luzerne County as of the latest release is Winter Weather (risk rating: Very High). Other significant hazards include Lightning (Relatively High) and Riverine Flooding (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts winter weather here at an average of 13 times per year, drawn from 253 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 Luzerne County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Pennsylvania profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events