FEMA Records
32
Very high volume
Washington · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Mason County, WA
32 FEMA disaster declarations (1965-2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Moderate. Most common hazard: Severe Storm.
- 32
- FEMA declarations
- 28
- Major disasters
- 85
- NRI risk · Relatively Moderate
- Severe Storm
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Mason County. Its 32 FEMA declarations are 29% above the Washington county mean and exceed the count for 89% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 15%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 15%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Moderate
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 32
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 305
- NFIP flood insurance claims filed
FEMA's National Risk Index and its declaration registry are separate measures. This county's registry includes Fire Management Assistance (FM) records, which are not presidential disaster declarations, alongside Major Disaster (DR) and Emergency (EM) records.
FEMA OpenFEMA declaration desk
County FIPS 53045 · Mason County 32 declarations · rank 304/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-HEAVY · RANK-UPPER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-MID · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-HEAVY 32
- MAJOR-HEAVY 88%
- RANK-UPPER #304
- PHOTO-FINISH Perry
- NRI-MID 85
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Severe Storm
- VS-ST-ABOVE +29%
Nearest declaration peer: Perry, MS (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Washington state profile
Mason County among high-volume declaration counties
FEMA declaration records among Mason County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- East Carroll · near 32
East Carroll · near
32 declarations
- Mason · this county 32
Mason · this county
32 declarations
- Nicholas · near 32
Nicholas · near
32 declarations
- Perry · near 32
Perry · near
32 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Mason County carries 32 FEMA declaration records, ranked 304 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Where Mason County ranks in the national declaration registry
Mason County vs. high-volume counties in this registry
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Mason County
32 Top 11% higher than 89% 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
Mason County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Mason County is led by Earthquake (about $26.3M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Very High), while Landslide 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 Mason County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 305 paid claims, totaling $6.2M. PlainHazard uses 50-499 claims for this descriptive band; FEMA does not publish it as a safety or coverage category. The $20.3K 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. Mason County's 32 federal records stand 29% above the Washington county mean of 24.9. 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 85.3/100 (Relatively Moderate). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively Low (roughly $44.3M in annualized losses). Social vulnerability reads Relatively High and community resilience Relatively Low, both critical modifiers of realized harm here. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Landslide stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 11 times per year here.
79 /100
Historical Activity Index
Very High historical activity
Mason County, WA · 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) Very High
23/30
32 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.5x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
16/25
32 declarations (1.3x state county average of 25)
Major Disaster Share Very High
22/25
28 of 32 declarations are major disasters (88%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
18/20
7 different disaster types declared in Mason County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Mason 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
88%
Mostly major
NRI risk score
85
Relatively Moderate
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Mason 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Landslide | Relatively High | an average of 11 times per year |
| Earthquake | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 34 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 6 years |
| Coastal Flooding | Relatively Moderate | an average of 3.1 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Low | 2.7 modeled event-days per year |
| Volcanic Activity | Very Low | roughly once every 1,000 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 12 times per year |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 15,290 years |
| Tsunami | Very Low | roughly once every 18 years |
| Avalanche | Very Low | roughly once every 100 years |
| Ice Storm | Very Low | roughly once every 3 years |
| Lightning | Very Low | an average of 5.2 times per year |
| Tornado | Very Low | roughly once every 23 years |
| Drought | Very Low | 1.3 modeled event-days per year |
| Strong Wind | Very Low | roughly once every 113 years |
| Hail | Very Low | roughly once every 97 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Severe Storm 13
Flood 12
Biological 2
Earthquake 2
Fire 1
Coastal Storm 1
Volcanic Eruption 1
What Severe Storm declarations mean here
Severe Storm is the most frequent declaration type on Mason County's record, 41% of its declarations. In FEMA's vocabulary this covers convective weather: thunderstorm straight-line winds, large hail, and the multi-day outbreaks that often carry embedded tornadoes. Activity is heaviest in spring and summer, though the season varies by region.
These events behave differently from a hurricane on paper. Damage tends to be distributed along a storm track rather than concentrated on a coastline, and a declaration typically follows an outbreak that crossed several counties over a few days, not a single point of impact. Because the qualifying threshold is the cost of uninsured public and individual losses rather than storm intensity, two similar storms can produce a declaration in one year and none in another.
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 - 28 87.5%
of all 32 declarations
Emergency - 3 9.4%
of all 32 declarations
Fire Management - 1 3.1%
of all 32 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2 | |
| 2024 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 3 | |
| 2019 | 1 | |
| 2016 | 2 | |
| 2012 | 1 | |
| 2009 | 2 | |
| 2008 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 1 | |
Show 9 earlier declaration years
| 2001 | 1 | |
| 1997 | 2 | |
| 1996 | 1 | |
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1991 | 1 | |
| 1980 | 2 | |
| 1976 | 1 | |
| 1974 | 1 | |
| 1965 | 2 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 32 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 32 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4906 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2026-04-07 |
| 3629 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | EM | Flood | 2025-12-12 |
| 4775 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2024-04-28 |
| 5468 | MCEWAN FIRE | FM | Fire | 2023-07-05 |
| 4650 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, SNOWSTORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2022-03-29 |
| 4593 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2021-04-08 |
| 4539 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2020-04-23 |
| 4481 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-22 |
| 3427 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4418 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, MUDSLIDES, TORNADO | DR | Severe Storm | 2019-03-04 |
| 4253 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, MUDSLIDES, AND A T | DR | Flood | 2016-02-02 |
| 4249 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-01-15 |
| 4056 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2012-03-05 |
| 1825 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND RECORD AND NEAR RECORD SNOW | DR | Severe Storm | 2009-03-02 |
| 1817 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, LANDSLIDES, MUDSLIDES, AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2009-01-30 |
| 1734 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2007-12-08 |
| 1682 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2007-02-14 |
| 1641 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, TIDAL SURGE, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2006-05-17 |
| 3227 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Coastal Storm | 2005-09-07 |
| 1499 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2003-11-07 |
Show 12 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1361 | EARTHQUAKE | DR | Earthquake | 2001-03-01 |
| 1172 | HEAVY RAINS, SNOW MELT, FLOODING, LAND & MUD SLIDES | DR | Flood | 1997-04-02 |
| 1159 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, LAND & MUDS SLIDES,FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1997-01-17 |
| 1079 | SEVERE STORMS, HIGH WIND, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1996-01-03 |
| 981 | SEVERE STORMS & HIGH WIND | DR | Severe Storm | 1993-03-04 |
| 883 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1990-11-26 |
| 623 | VOLCANIC ERUPTION, MT. ST. HELENS | DR | Volcanic Eruption | 1980-05-21 |
| 612 | STORMS, HIGH TIDES, MUDSLIDES & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1979-12-31 |
| 492 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1975-12-13 |
| 414 | SEVERE STORMS, SNOWMELT & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1974-01-25 |
| 196 | EARTHQUAKE | DR | Earthquake | 1965-05-11 |
| 185 | HEAVY RAINS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1964-12-29 |
Storm Events in Washington
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Mason County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Snow | 1,700 | 5 | 7 | $2.3M |
| High Wind | 614 | 15 | 6 | $1.1B |
| Wildfire | 299 | 4 | 4 | $1.8B |
| Winter Weather | 259 | 9 | 62 | $1.1M |
| Flood | 231 | 4 | 0 | $391.2M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
305
Total Paid
$6.2M
Avg Per Claim
$20.3K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Moderate
Score: 85.3/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$44.3M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively High
Community Resilience
Relatively Low
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Landslide Relatively High
Earthquake Relatively Moderate
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate
Coastal Flooding Relatively Moderate
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Volcanic Activity Very Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Wildfire Very Low
Tsunami Very Low
Avalanche Very Low
Ice Storm Very Low
Lightning Very Low
Tornado Very Low
Drought Very Low
Strong Wind Very Low
Hail Very Low
Cold Wave 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 Mason County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Landslide carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively High), while the county's declaration history is led by Severe Storm. 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
Mason County's closest FEMA peer: Dickey County, ND
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Mason County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Mason County shows 32 FEMA declarations, led by Severe Storm.
Similar Major-disaster share
Mason County: 28 of 32 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Mason County: NRI composite 85.3 (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 Mason County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Mason 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: 85.3 (Relatively Moderate).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 32. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Mason County's NFIP claims file (305 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 Mason County?
The most common disaster type in Mason County is Severe Storm, with 13 declarations. Other disaster types include Flood (12), Biological (2), Earthquake (2).
How does Mason County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Washington average?
FEMA lists 32 declaration records for Mason County. That is 29% above the Washington county mean of 24.9. Its count is also 54% 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 Mason County received?
Mason County has received 28 major disaster declarations, representing 88% of all 32 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Mason County filed?
Mason County has 305 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $6.2M in payments, with an average of $20.3K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Mason County?
No. In Mason County, Landslide has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Earthquake leads Expected Annual Loss at about $26.3M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Mason County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Mason County was 2020, with 3 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1965 to 2026.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Mason County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Mason County, Washington has an overall risk score of 85.3 out of 100 (Relatively Moderate). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively High and community resilience is Relatively Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $44.3M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Mason County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Mason County is Landslide (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Earthquake (Relatively Moderate) and Riverine Flooding (Relatively Moderate). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts landslide here at an average of 11 times per year. 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 Mason County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Washington profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events