FEMA Records
28
High volume
Arkansas · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Ouachita County, AR
28 FEMA disaster declarations (1979-2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Severe Storm.
- 28
- FEMA declarations
- 22
- Major disasters
- 51
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Severe Storm
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Ouachita County. Its 28 FEMA declarations are 16% above the Arkansas county mean and exceed the count for 81% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 49%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 49%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 28
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 91
- 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 05103 · Ouachita County 28 declarations · rank 555/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-LOW · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-HEAVY 28
- MAJOR-MID 79%
- RANK-MID #555
- PHOTO-FINISH Loíza
- NRI-LOW 51
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Severe Storm
- VS-ST-ABOVE +16%
Nearest declaration peer: Loíza, PR (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Arkansas state profile
Ouachita County among high-volume declaration counties
FEMA declaration records among Ouachita County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Hertford · near 28
Hertford · near
28 declarations
- Loíza · near 28
Loíza · near
28 declarations
- Maunabo · near 28
Maunabo · near
28 declarations
- Ouachita · this county 28
Ouachita · this county
28 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Ouachita County carries 28 FEMA declaration records, ranked 555 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Where Ouachita County ranks in the national declaration registry
Ouachita County vs. high-volume counties in this registry
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Ouachita County
28 Top 19% higher than 81% 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
Ouachita County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Ouachita County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $4.5M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Low), 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 Ouachita County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 91 paid claims, totaling $1.5M. PlainHazard uses 50-499 claims for this descriptive band; FEMA does not publish it as a safety or coverage category. The $16.7K 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. Ouachita County's 28 federal records stand 16% above the Arkansas county mean of 24.2. 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 carries a high composite score on FEMA's National Risk Index, 51.2/100, rated Relatively Low. Its Expected Annual Loss rating is Very Low (roughly $10.4M in annualized losses), and a Very High social-vulnerability profile combined with Relatively Low 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 roughly once every 1 years here, based on 67 historical events on record.
74 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Ouachita County, AR · 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
20/30
28 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.4x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
14/25
28 declarations (1.2x state county average of 24)
Major Disaster Share Very High
20/25
22 of 28 declarations are major disasters (79%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
20/20
8 different disaster types declared in Ouachita County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Ouachita 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
79%
Mostly major
NRI risk score
51
Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Ouachita 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 | roughly once every 1 years |
| Strong Wind | Relatively Moderate | an average of 3.7 times per year |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | roughly once every 375 years |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Low | 19 modeled event-days per year |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | an average of 4.3 times per year |
| Tornado | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 2 years |
| Lightning | Relatively Moderate | an average of 65 times per year |
| Landslide | Very Low | roughly once every 3 years |
| Hurricane | Very Low | roughly once every 24 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Low | an average of 4.1 times per year |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 3.7 times per year |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 3,490 years |
| Drought | Very Low | 14 modeled event-days per year |
| Cold Wave | Very Low | roughly once every 2 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Severe Storm 11
Flood 5
Tornado 3
Winter Storm 2
Hurricane 2
Biological 2
Severe Ice Storm 2
Snowstorm 1
What Severe Storm declarations mean here
Severe Storm is the most frequent declaration type on Ouachita County's record, 39% 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 78.6%
of all 28 declarations
Emergency - 6 21.4%
of all 28 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 2 | |
| 2023 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 4 | |
| 2017 | 1 | |
| 2016 | 2 | |
| 2015 | 1 | |
| 2010 | 2 | |
| 2009 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 1 | |
| 2001 | 3 | |
| 1997 | 1 | |
| 1994 | 1 | |
| 1992 | 1 | |
Show 5 earlier declaration years
| 1991 | 1 | |
| 1990 | 1 | |
| 1989 | 1 | |
| 1988 | 1 | |
| 1979 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 28 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 28 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3636 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Winter Storm | 2026-01-24 |
| 4873 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2025-05-21 |
| 3627 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM | Severe Storm | 2025-04-05 |
| 4700 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR | Winter Storm | 2023-04-04 |
| 3541 | HURRICANE LAURA | EM | Hurricane | 2020-08-27 |
| 4556 | SEVERE STORMS AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR | Tornado | 2020-07-10 |
| 4518 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-04-03 |
| 3461 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4318 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2017-06-15 |
| 4270 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-05-06 |
| 4254 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-02-05 |
| 4226 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2015-06-26 |
| 1872 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2010-02-04 |
| 1861 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2009-12-03 |
| 1845 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2009-06-16 |
| 3215 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-02 |
| 1528 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-06-30 |
| 1363 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2001-03-13 |
| 1354 | SEVERE WINTER ICE STORM | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2000-12-29 |
| 3159 | SEVERE WINTER ICE STORM | EM | Severe Ice Storm | 2000-12-28 |
Show 8 earlier declaration records
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1176 | FLOODING, SEVERE STORMS | DR | Flood | 1997-04-14 |
| 1011 | SEVERE WINTER ICE STORM | DR | Snowstorm | 1994-02-28 |
| 950 | SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS | DR | Severe Storm | 1992-07-24 |
| 907 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1991-05-30 |
| 865 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1990-05-15 |
| 817 | SEVERE STORMS & TORNADOES | DR | Tornado | 1988-11-23 |
| 807 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1987-12-31 |
| 574 | TORNADO | DR | Tornado | 1979-04-11 |
Storm Events in Arkansas
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Ouachita County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 3,657 | 10 | 23 | $60.9M |
| Hail | 2,230 | 0 | 0 | $7.7M |
| Flash Flood | 1,517 | 12 | 3 | $15.9M |
| Heat | 1,222 | 2 | 325 | $0 |
| Flood | 1,152 | 9 | 0 | $40.2M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
91
Total Paid
$1.5M
Avg Per Claim
$16.7K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 51.2/100
Expected Annual Loss
Very Low
$10.4M/year
Social Vulnerability
Very High
Community Resilience
Relatively Low
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Ice Storm Relatively High
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Hail Relatively Moderate
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively Moderate
Landslide Very Low
Hurricane Very Low
Riverine Flooding Relatively Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Wildfire Very Low
Drought Very Low
Cold Wave 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 Ouachita 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
Ouachita County's closest FEMA peer: San Luis Obispo County, CA
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Ouachita County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Ouachita County shows 28 FEMA declarations, led by Severe Storm.
Similar Major-disaster share
Ouachita County: 22 of 28 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Ouachita County: NRI composite 51.2 (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 Ouachita County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Ouachita 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: 51.2 (Relatively Low).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 28. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Ouachita County's NFIP claims file (91 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 Ouachita County?
The most common disaster type in Ouachita County is Severe Storm, with 11 declarations. Other disaster types include Flood (5), Tornado (3), Winter Storm (2).
How does Ouachita County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Arkansas average?
FEMA lists 28 declaration records for Ouachita County. That is 16% above the Arkansas county mean of 24.2. Its count is also 35% 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 Ouachita County received?
Ouachita County has received 22 major disaster declarations, representing 79% of all 28 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Ouachita County filed?
Ouachita County has 91 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $1.5M in payments, with an average of $16.7K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Ouachita County?
No. In Ouachita County, Ice Storm has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $4.5M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Ouachita County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Ouachita County was 2020, with 4 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1979 to 2026.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Ouachita County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Ouachita County, Arkansas has an overall risk score of 51.2 out of 100 (Relatively Low). Social vulnerability here rates Very High, while community resilience comes in at Relatively Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Very Low, representing $10.4M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Ouachita County?
The top hazard flagged by FEMA's NRI for Ouachita County as of the latest release is Ice Storm (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Strong Wind (Relatively Moderate) and Earthquake (Relatively Low). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts ice storm here at roughly once every 1 years, drawn from 67 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 Ouachita County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Arkansas profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events