FEMA Records
29
High volume
Pennsylvania · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Montgomery County, PA
29 FEMA disaster declarations (1965-2021), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively High. Most common hazard: Hurricane.
- 29
- FEMA declarations
- 21
- Major disasters
- 97
- NRI risk · Relatively High
- Hurricane
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Montgomery County. Its 29 FEMA declarations are 56% above the Pennsylvania county mean and exceed the count for 85% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 3%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 3%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively High
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 29
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 6,189
- 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 Montgomery County compare?
Montgomery County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time
29 Top 15% higher than 85% 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
Montgomery County's FEMA Risk Index score
FEMA National Risk Index composite score vs. the Pennsylvania county average
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Montgomery County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $192.6M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively High), 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 Montgomery County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
FEMA's NFIP table contains a substantial paid-claim history for this county: 6,189 claims and $185.2M 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 $29.9K. 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. Montgomery County's 29 federal records stand 56% 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 96.8/100 (Relatively High). Expected Annual Loss is rated Relatively High (roughly $296.7M 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, Winter Weather stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Very High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 12 times per year here, based on 236 historical events on record.
Declaration frequency
The FEMA register is busy by both local and national comparisons. It contains 29 entries for Montgomery County, including 21 Major Disaster records, 56% above the Pennsylvania county mean. Across the 56-year span, that works out to 0.5 declarations a year. Hurricane leads the file with 8 entries. Declaration type records the federal action taken, not every assistance program approved.
77 /100
Historical Activity Index
Very High historical activity
Montgomery 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
21/30
29 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.4x national county average)
County Disaster Density Very High
20/25
29 declarations (1.6x state county average of 19)
Major Disaster Share High
18/25
21 of 29 declarations are major disasters (72%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
18/20
7 different disaster types declared in Montgomery County
Historical Declaration Activity
Activity Band
High
vs. Pennsylvania Avg
+56%
State avg: 18.6
vs. National Avg
+40%
National avg: 20.7
Avg Per Year
0.5
Over 56 years
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Montgomery 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
72%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
97
Relatively High
Source: FEMA National Risk Index FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Montgomery 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 12 times per year |
| Strong Wind | Very High | an average of 7 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively High | roughly once every 1 years |
| Heat Wave | Relatively High | 9.6 modeled event-days per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively High | an average of 5.7 times per year |
| Tornado | Relatively High | roughly once every 4 years |
| Earthquake | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 720 years |
| Hurricane | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 12 years |
| Ice Storm | Relatively Moderate | an average of 1.4 times per year |
| Lightning | Relatively Moderate | an average of 35 times per year |
| Landslide | Relatively Low | roughly once every 4 years |
| Drought | Relatively Low | 4.1 modeled event-days per year |
| Hail | Relatively Low | an average of 2.6 times per year |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 21,686 years |
| Coastal Flooding | No Rating | roughly once every 83 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Hurricane 8
Flood 7
Severe Storm 6
Snowstorm 4
Biological 2
Severe Ice Storm 1
Drought 1
What Hurricane declarations mean here
Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Montgomery County's federal record, 28% 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 - 21 72.4%
of all 29 declarations
Emergency - 8 27.6%
of all 29 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2016 | 1 | |
| 2014 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 2 | |
| 2011 | 4 | |
| 2010 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 3 | |
| 2003 | 1 | |
| 2001 | 1 | |
| 1999 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 3 | |
| 1994 | 1 | |
Show 5 earlier declaration years
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1973 | 1 | |
| 1972 | 1 | |
| 1971 | 1 | |
| 1965 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 29 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 29 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 |
| 4267 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND SNOWSTORM | DR | Snowstorm | 2016-03-23 |
| 3367 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Severe Ice Storm | 2014-02-06 |
| 4099 | HURRICANE SANDY | DR | Hurricane | 2013-01-10 |
| 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 |
| 1898 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORMS | DR | Snowstorm | 2010-04-16 |
| 1649 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2006-06-30 |
| 3235 | HURRICANE KATRINA | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-10 |
| 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 |
| 1538 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-08-06 |
| 3180 | SNOW | EM | Severe Storm | 2003-03-14 |
| 1383 | TROPICAL STORM ALLISON | DR | Severe Storm | 2001-06-21 |
| 1294 | HURRICANE FLOYD MAJOR DISASTER DECLARATIONS | DR | Hurricane | 1999-09-18 |
Show 9 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1138 | FLOODING ASSOCIATED WITH TROPICAL DEPRESSION FRAN | DR | Flood | 1996-09-13 |
| 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 |
| 400 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1973-07-17 |
| 340 | TROPICAL STORM AGNES | DR | Flood | 1972-06-23 |
| 312 | FLOODS | DR | Flood | 1971-09-18 |
| 206 | WATER SHORTAGE | DR | Drought | 1965-08-18 |
Storm Events in Pennsylvania
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Montgomery 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 NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
6,189
Total Paid
$185.2M
Avg Per Claim
$29.9K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively High
Score: 96.8/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively High
$296.7M/year
Social Vulnerability
Very Low
Community Resilience
Very High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Winter Weather Very High
Strong Wind Very High
Cold Wave Relatively High
Heat Wave Relatively High
Riverine Flooding Relatively High
Tornado Relatively High
Earthquake Relatively Moderate
Hurricane Relatively Moderate
Ice Storm Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively Moderate
Landslide Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Low
Hail Relatively Low
Wildfire Very Low
Coastal Flooding No Rating
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) 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 Montgomery 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
Montgomery County's closest FEMA peer: Howard County, MO
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Montgomery County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Montgomery County shows 29 FEMA declarations, led by Hurricane.
Similar Major-disaster share
Montgomery County: 21 of 29 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Montgomery County: NRI composite 96.8 (Relatively High).
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 Montgomery County - capture-dated entries only.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Montgomery County's NFIP claims file (6,189 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).
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common disaster type in Montgomery County?
The most common disaster type in Montgomery County is Hurricane, with 8 declarations. Other disaster types include Flood (7), Severe Storm (6), Snowstorm (4).
How does Montgomery County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Pennsylvania average?
FEMA lists 29 declaration records for Montgomery County. That is 56% above the Pennsylvania county mean of 18.6. Its count is also 40% 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 Montgomery County received?
Montgomery County has received 21 major disaster declarations, representing 72% of all 29 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Montgomery County filed?
Montgomery County has 6,189 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $185.2M in payments, with an average of $29.9K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Montgomery County?
No. In Montgomery County, Winter Weather has the highest National Risk Index rating (Very High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $192.6M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Montgomery County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Montgomery County was 2011, with 4 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1965 to 2021.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Montgomery County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania has an overall risk score of 96.8 out of 100 (Relatively High). On social vulnerability the county rates Very Low; on community resilience, Very High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively High, representing $296.7M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Montgomery County?
The top hazard flagged by FEMA's NRI for Montgomery County as of the latest release is Winter Weather (risk rating: Very High). Other significant hazards include Strong Wind (Very High) and Cold Wave (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts winter weather here at an average of 12 times per year, drawn from 236 historical events on record. 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.
What this means for Montgomery County
Montgomery County, PA has 29 federal declaration records, 56% more than the Pennsylvania county mean of 19; its history sits in PlainHazard's high activity band.
- Within this above-state-average declaration file, major disaster leads with 21 of 29 records; the category describes past federal action, not the next likely hazard. Pennsylvania overview
- The state benchmark and national rank point the same way: this count tops the Pennsylvania mean and the totals for 85% of 3,266 U.S. counties. Most-disaster rankings
- The large NFIP claims file and FEMA declaration history measure different federal records; the guide explains where they overlap and where they do not. Disaster-data guide
An above-average declaration count records past federal responses; it does not predict the next event. Current warnings come from the National Weather Service and local emergency officials.
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.