FEMA Records
17
Below median
Texas · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Rockwall County, TX
17 FEMA disaster declarations (1966-2024), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Hurricane.
- 17
- FEMA declarations
- 9
- Major disasters
- 71
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Hurricane
- Top hazard
The verdict
Rockwall County has a nationally busy FEMA history: 17 declarations, more than 32% of counties in this registry. But the state comparison tempers that reading: the total is 19% below the Texas county mean. FEMA's separate National Risk Index places the county in the riskiest 29%; that score models loss and vulnerability rather than counting declarations.
- Riskiest 29%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 17
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 61
- 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 48397 · Rockwall County 17 declarations · rank 2108/3,266
DECL-MID · MAJOR-MID · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-LOW · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-BELOW
- DECL-MID 17
- MAJOR-MID 53%
- RANK-LOWER #2,108
- PHOTO-FINISH Curry
- NRI-LOW 71
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Hurricane
- VS-ST-BELOW -19%
Nearest declaration peer: Curry, OR (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Texas state profile
Rockwall County among counties with fewer federal records
FEMA declaration records among Rockwall County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Curry · near 17
Curry · near
17 declarations
- Murray · near 17
Murray · near
17 declarations
- Rockwall · this county 17
Rockwall · this county
17 declarations
- Washington · near 17
Washington · near
17 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Rockwall County carries 17 FEMA declaration records, ranked 2108 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
Rockwall County versus quieter counties in this dataset
Rockwall County among lower-declaration counties nationally
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Rockwall County
17 32nd percentile higher than 32% 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
Rockwall County's FEMA Risk Index score
What does Rockwall County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 61 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 $24.2K average describes payments on recorded claims only, leaving uninsured damage and properties without a claim outside the measure.
Start with the state benchmark: a Texas county averages 20.9 federal declaration records, while Rockwall County has 17. The gap is 19% below that mean. Fewer entries indicate a quieter history of recorded federal actions, not immunity from a hazard and not a prediction about what happens next.
FEMA National Risk Index
This county carries a high composite score on FEMA's National Risk Index, 70.7/100, rated Relatively Low. Its Expected Annual Loss rating is Relatively Low (roughly $46.4M in annualized losses), and a Very Low social-vulnerability profile combined with Very High community resilience shapes how much of that raw exposure becomes realized harm. Of the 18 hazards FEMA models, Tornado stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at roughly once every 7 years here, based on 13 historical events on record.
55 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Rockwall County, TX · 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) Moderate
12/30
17 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (0.8x national county average)
County Disaster Density Moderate
10/25
17 declarations (0.8x state county average of 21)
Major Disaster Share High
13/25
9 of 17 declarations are major disasters (53%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
20/20
8 different disaster types declared in Rockwall County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Rockwall 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
53%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
71
Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Rockwall 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Tornado | Relatively High | roughly once every 7 years |
| Hail | Relatively Moderate | an average of 8 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Moderate | 18 modeled event-days per year |
| Strong Wind | Relatively Moderate | an average of 4.4 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 1 years |
| Wildfire | Relatively Low | roughly once every 1,151 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Low | roughly once every 1 years |
| Ice Storm | Relatively Low | an average of 1.3 times per year |
| Earthquake | Very Low | roughly once every 1,062 years |
| Lightning | Relatively Low | an average of 56 times per year |
| Drought | Relatively Low | 23 modeled event-days per year |
| Hurricane | Very Low | roughly once every 87 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 4.2 times per year |
| Landslide | Very Low | roughly once every 62 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Severe Storm 3
Fire 3
Hurricane 3
Flood 2
Severe Ice Storm 2
Biological 2
Other 1
Drought 1
What Hurricane declarations mean here
Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Rockwall County's federal record, 18% 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 - 9 52.9%
of all 17 declarations
Emergency - 8 47.1%
of all 17 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2016 | 1 | |
| 2008 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 1 | |
| 2005 | 3 | |
| 2003 | 1 | |
| 1999 | 1 | |
| 1998 | 1 | |
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1989 | 1 | |
| 1966 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 17 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 17 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4781 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2024-05-17 |
| 4586 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2021-02-19 |
| 3554 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Severe Ice Storm | 2021-02-14 |
| 4485 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-25 |
| 3458 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4255 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-02-09 |
| 3284 | WILDFIRES | EM | Fire | 2008-03-14 |
| 1624 | EXTREME WILDFIRE THREAT | DR | Fire | 2006-01-11 |
| 1606 | HURRICANE RITA | DR | Hurricane | 2005-09-24 |
| 3261 | HURRICANE RITA | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-21 |
| 3216 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-02 |
| 3171 | LOSS OF THE SPACE SHUTTLE COLUMBIA | EM | Other | 2003-02-01 |
| 3142 | EXTREME FIRE HAZARDS | EM | Fire | 1999-09-01 |
| 1239 | TROPICAL STORM CHARLEY | DR | Severe Storm | 1998-08-26 |
| 3113 | EXTREME FIRE HAZARD | EM | Drought | 1993-09-10 |
| 828 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES & FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1989-05-19 |
| 218 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1966-05-12 |
Storm Events in Texas
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Rockwall County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 14,072 | 0 | 15 | $7.4B |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 10,293 | 41 | 141 | $369.9M |
| Drought | 7,032 | 0 | 0 | $86.0K |
| Flash Flood | 4,728 | 338 | 24 | $47.6B |
| Heat | 4,079 | 119 | 405 | $0 |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
61
Total Paid
$1.5M
Avg Per Claim
$24.2K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 70.7/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$46.4M/year
Social Vulnerability
Very Low
Community Resilience
Very High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Tornado Relatively High
Hail Relatively Moderate
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Moderate
Wildfire Relatively Low
Riverine Flooding Relatively Low
Ice Storm Relatively Low
Earthquake Very Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Low
Hurricane Very Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Landslide 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: Tornado
Tornado exposure is the most spatially concentrated in the model: total destruction along a narrow corridor with intact property either side. County-level averages therefore understate severity badly for anyone actually in the path, and overstate it for everyone else.
Worth noting for Rockwall County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Tornado carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively 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
Rockwall County's closest FEMA peer: Hardin County, TN
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Rockwall County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Similar modeled NRI score
Rockwall County: NRI composite 70.7 (Relatively Low).
Similar Major-disaster share
Rockwall County: 9 of 17 of its declarations are Major.
Closest declaration profiles
Rockwall County shows 17 FEMA declarations, led by Hurricane.
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 Rockwall County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Rockwall 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: 70.7 (Relatively Low).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 17. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Rockwall County's NFIP claims file (61 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 Rockwall County?
The most common disaster type in Rockwall County is Hurricane, with 3 declarations. Other disaster types include Severe Storm (3), Fire (3), Flood (2).
How does Rockwall County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Texas average?
The typical Texas county has 20.9 FEMA declaration records; Rockwall County has 17, or 19% fewer. Against the national county mean of 20.7, this county's total is 18% lower. The comparison is historical and says nothing about the probability of a future event.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Rockwall County received?
Rockwall County has received 9 major disaster declarations, representing 53% of all 17 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Rockwall County filed?
Rockwall County has 61 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $1.5M in payments, with an average of $24.2K per claim.
What was the worst year for disasters in Rockwall County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Rockwall County was 2005, with 3 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1966 to 2024.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Rockwall County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Rockwall County, Texas has an overall risk score of 70.7 out of 100 (Relatively Low). The county's social vulnerability rating is Very Low and community resilience is Very High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $46.4M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Rockwall County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Rockwall County is Tornado (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Hail (Relatively Moderate) and Heat Wave (Relatively Moderate). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts tornado here at roughly once every 7 years, drawn from 13 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 Rockwall County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Texas profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events