FEMA Records
30
High volume
Kentucky · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Ohio County, KY
30 FEMA disaster declarations (1971-2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Severe Storm.
- 30
- FEMA declarations
- 22
- Major disasters
- 54
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Severe Storm
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Ohio County. Its 30 FEMA declarations are 7% above the Kentucky county mean and exceed the count for 86% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 46%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 46%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 30
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 15
- 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 21183 · Ohio County 30 declarations · rank 421/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-LOW · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-HEAVY 30
- MAJOR-MID 73%
- RANK-MID #421
- PHOTO-FINISH Jefferson
- NRI-LOW 54
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Severe Storm
- VS-ST-ABOVE +7%
Nearest declaration peer: Jefferson, OK (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Kentucky state profile
Ohio County among high-volume declaration counties
FEMA declaration records among Ohio County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Clallam · near 30
Clallam · near
30 declarations
- Jefferson · near 30
Jefferson · near
30 declarations
- Latimer · near 30
Latimer · near
30 declarations
- Ohio · this county 30
Ohio · this county
30 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Ohio County carries 30 FEMA declaration records, ranked 421 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Where Ohio County ranks in the national declaration registry
Ohio County vs. high-volume counties in this registry
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Ohio County
30 Top 14% higher than 86% 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
Ohio County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Ohio County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $5.7M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Ice Storm 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 Ohio County's hazard record show?
FEMA National Risk Index
This county carries a high composite score on FEMA's National Risk Index, 54.2/100, rated Relatively Low. Its Expected Annual Loss rating is Very Low (roughly $13.9M in annualized losses), and a Relatively High social-vulnerability profile combined with Relatively Moderate community resilience shapes how much of that raw exposure becomes realized harm. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Ice Storm stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 1.4 times per year here, based on 94 historical events on record.
Reading the federal records together
This county has a small entry in FEMA's NFIP paid-claims table: 15 claims and $179.7K 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.
The declaration register points in the busier direction. Ohio County's 30 federal records stand 7% above the Kentucky county mean of 28.1. 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.
73 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Ohio County, KY · 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
22/30
30 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.4x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
13/25
30 declarations (1.1x state county average of 28)
Major Disaster Share High
18/25
22 of 30 declarations are major disasters (73%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
20/20
9 different disaster types declared in Ohio County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Ohio 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
73%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
54
Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Ohio 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Ice Storm | Relatively High | an average of 1.4 times per year |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | an average of 3.1 times per year |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | roughly once every 217 years |
| Strong Wind | Relatively Moderate | an average of 5.4 times per year |
| Tornado | Relatively Low | roughly once every 2 years |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Low | 6.3 modeled event-days per year |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 7.6 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Low | an average of 2.9 times per year |
| Landslide | Very Low | an average of 1.1 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Low | an average of 1 time per year |
| Drought | Relatively Low | 3.3 modeled event-days per year |
| Lightning | Relatively Low | an average of 53 times per year |
| Hurricane | Very Low | roughly once every 92 years |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 7,756 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Severe Storm 15
Flood 4
Tornado 3
Biological 2
Severe Ice Storm 2
Winter Storm 1
Hurricane 1
Snowstorm 1
Other 1
What Severe Storm declarations mean here
Severe Storm is the most frequent declaration type on Ohio County's record, 50% 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 - 22 73.3%
of all 30 declarations
Emergency - 8 26.7%
of all 30 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 4 | |
| 2024 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2018 | 1 | |
| 2016 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 1 | |
| 2012 | 1 | |
| 2010 | 1 | |
| 2009 | 3 | |
| 2008 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
Show 7 earlier declaration years
| 2004 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 1 | |
| 1997 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 1 | |
| 1989 | 1 | |
| 1975 | 1 | |
| 1971 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 30 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 30 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3633 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Winter Storm | 2026-01-24 |
| 4864 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2025-04-24 |
| 3626 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM | Severe Storm | 2025-04-03 |
| 4860 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2025-02-24 |
| 3624 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND LANDSLIDES | EM | Severe Storm | 2025-02-16 |
| 4804 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2024-07-23 |
| 4702 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2023-04-10 |
| 4630 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR | Tornado | 2021-12-12 |
| 3575 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | EM | Tornado | 2021-12-11 |
| 4595 | SEVERE, STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2021-04-23 |
| 4497 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-28 |
| 3469 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4361 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2018-04-26 |
| 4278 | SEVERE STORM, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-08-26 |
| 4218 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, SNOWSTORM, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2015-05-12 |
| 4057 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2012-03-06 |
| 1912 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, MUDSLIDES, AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 2010-05-11 |
| 1818 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2009-02-05 |
| 3302 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Severe Ice Storm | 2009-01-28 |
| 1802 | SEVERE WIND STORM ASSOCIATED WITH TROPICAL DEPRESSION IKE | DR | Severe Storm | 2008-10-09 |
Show 10 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1757 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, MUDSLIDES, AND LANDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2008-05-19 |
| 3231 | HURRICANE KATRINA | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-10 |
| 1537 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-08-06 |
| 1523 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-06-10 |
| 1414 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2002-05-07 |
| 1163 | SEVERE STORM, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 1997-03-04 |
| 1089 | BLIZZARD OF 96 | DR | Snowstorm | 1996-01-13 |
| 821 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1989-02-24 |
| 3009 | HIGH WINDS | EM | Other | 1975-03-19 |
| 305 | TORNADO | DR | Tornado | 1971-05-10 |
Storm Events in Kentucky
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Ohio County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 6,702 | 9 | 56 | $55.2M |
| Flash Flood | 1,757 | 65 | 16 | $42.6M |
| Flood | 1,646 | 31 | 6 | $37.1M |
| Hail | 1,534 | 1 | 0 | $4.7M |
| Winter Weather | 1,079 | 14 | 54 | $655.0K |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
15
Total Paid
$179.7K
Avg Per Claim
$12.0K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 54.2/100
Expected Annual Loss
Very Low
$13.9M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively High
Community Resilience
Relatively Moderate
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Ice Storm Relatively High
Hail Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Tornado Relatively Low
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Riverine Flooding Relatively Low
Landslide Very Low
Cold Wave Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Hurricane Very Low
Wildfire Very 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: Ice Storm
Ice storms load power lines and tree limbs with accumulating freezing rain until they fail. The characteristic cost is infrastructure and multi-day power loss across a wide area rather than structural damage to buildings, which is why their consequences often outlast the weather that caused them.
Worth noting for Ohio County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Ice Storm 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
Ohio County's closest FEMA peer: Solano County, CA
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Ohio County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Ohio County shows 30 FEMA declarations, led by Severe Storm.
Similar Major-disaster share
Ohio County: 22 of 30 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Ohio County: NRI composite 54.2 (Relatively 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 Ohio County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Ohio 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: 54.2 (Relatively Low).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 30. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Most disaster-prone counties
With 30 FEMA declarations, Ohio County sits in the high-volume declaration band - see how that count ranks against other U.S. counties.
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 Ohio County?
The most common disaster type in Ohio County is Severe Storm, with 15 declarations. Other disaster types include Flood (4), Tornado (3), Biological (2).
How does Ohio County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Kentucky average?
FEMA lists 30 declaration records for Ohio County. That is 7% above the Kentucky county mean of 28.1. Its count is also 45% 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 Ohio County received?
Ohio County has received 22 major disaster declarations, representing 73% of all 30 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Ohio County filed?
Ohio County has 15 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $179.7K in payments, with an average of $12.0K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Ohio County?
No. In Ohio County, Ice Storm has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $5.7M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Ohio County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Ohio County was 2025, with 4 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1971 to 2026.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Ohio County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Ohio County, Kentucky has an overall risk score of 54.2 out of 100 (Relatively Low). Social vulnerability here rates Relatively High, while community resilience comes in at Relatively Moderate. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Very Low, representing $13.9M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Ohio County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Ohio County as of the latest release is Ice Storm (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Hail (Relatively Moderate) and Earthquake (Relatively Low). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts ice storm here at an average of 1.4 times per year, drawn from 94 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.
FEMA OpenFEMA declarations + NRI for Ohio County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Kentucky profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events