FEMA Records
5
Total declarations
Texas · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Rusk County, TX
5 FEMA disaster declarations (2020–2024), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Severe Ice Storm.
- 5
- FEMA declarations
- 4
- Major disasters
- 54
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Severe Ice Storm
- Top hazard
FEMA's National Risk Index places Rusk County in the top 46% of U.S. counties for overall natural-hazard risk, and its FEMA disaster-declaration count is higher than 72% of all 2,729 counties tracked.
How does Rusk County compare?
FEMA disaster declarations, this county versus the Texas county average and the national county average.
- Rusk County
- 5
- Texas county avg
- 3.3
- National county avg
- 3.7
How disaster-prone is Rusk County?
Rusk County, Texas has recorded 5 FEMA disaster declarations between 2020 and 2024, of which 4 were classified as Major Disaster declarations (DR) requiring federal individual and public assistance. That puts the county's average at 1.3 declarations per year across a 4-year record, or roughly 52% above the Texas county average of 3.3 and 34% above the national county average of 3.7. Declaration counts reflect federal recognition of event severity, not pure hazard frequency — smaller incidents handled locally never appear in FEMA's ledger.
The dominant disaster type on record is Severe Ice Storm, with 2 of 5 declarations falling under this category. FEMA's National Risk Index assigns this county an overall risk rating of Relatively Low (composite score 54.0/100), driven by an Expected Annual Loss rating of Relatively Low equivalent to roughly $14.9M in annualized losses. Social vulnerability scores Relatively High and community resilience scores Very Low — two factors that modify raw hazard exposure into actual harm. The single highest-risk natural hazard identified for this county is Strong Wind (Relatively High).
NFIP flood insurance claims data for this county is not present in the FEMA claims extract, which typically indicates either low historical flood activity or low policy penetration. Taken together, these indicators place Rusk County at a moderate relative risk level for federally recognized disasters. Households should pair this historical lens with forward-looking hazard maps — flood zones, wildfire risk overlays, and seismic zones published by FEMA and state emergency management — before making preparedness, insurance, or relocation decisions.
Risk Assessment
How Rusk County's disaster history compares to state and national averages.
Risk Level
Moderate
vs. Texas Avg
+52%
State avg: 3.3
vs. National Avg
+34%
National avg: 3.7
Avg Per Year
1.3
Over 4 years
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar — Rusk County
The radar plots Rusk County's relative exposure to the eight headline natural hazards used by the FEMA National Risk Index. Each axis is the qualitative NRI risk rating (Very Low through Very High) re-expressed on a 0-100 scale so that the polygon shape lets you compare a county against another at a glance.
NRI Source
FEMA 2023
Latest NRI release
County FIPS
48401
TX state code
Source: FEMA National Risk Index FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, 2023 release
Disaster Types
Breakdown of 5 FEMA disaster declarations in Rusk County by incident type.
Severe Ice Storm 2
Hurricane 1
Flood 1
Biological 1
Declaration Types
FEMA categorizes declarations as Major Disasters (DR), Emergencies (EM), or Fire Management Assistance (FM).
Major Disaster — 4 80.0%
of all 5 declarations
Emergency — 1 20.0%
of all 5 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
Disaster declarations per year for Rusk County.
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
All 5 FEMA disaster declarations for Rusk County, Texas.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4798 | HURRICANE BERYL | DR | Hurricane | 2024-07-09 |
| 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 |
Storm Events in Texas
NOAA severe weather data for Texas (2015–2025). Storm event data is tracked at the state level.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 15,525 | 0 | 20 | $7.4B |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 11,498 | 43 | 156 | $400.2M |
| Drought | 7,643 | 0 | 0 | $86.0K |
| Flash Flood | 5,352 | 483 | 24 | $48.0B |
| Heat | 4,426 | 121 | 423 | $0 |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015–2025
FEMA National Risk Index
FEMA's composite risk score combining 18 natural hazard types, social vulnerability, and community resilience for Rusk County.
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 54.0/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$14.9M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively High
Community Resilience
Very Low
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Risk rating for each of the 18 FEMA NRI natural hazard types in Rusk County.
Strong Wind Relatively High
Heat Wave Relatively Moderate
Ice Storm Relatively Moderate
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Wildfire Relatively Low
Lightning Relatively Moderate
Hurricane Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Low
Winter Weather Relatively Moderate
Landslide Very Low
Earthquake Very Low
Hail Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) Ratings reflect relative scores among all US counties. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri
Counties with Similar Risk in Texas
Other Texas counties with similar disaster declaration counts.
Disaster Preparedness Guides
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
How many natural disasters has Rusk County, Texas had?
Rusk County, Texas has received 5 FEMA disaster declarations from 2020 to 2024. Of these, 4 were major disaster declarations.
What is the most common disaster type in Rusk County?
The most common disaster type in Rusk County is Severe Ice Storm, with 2 declarations. Other disaster types include Hurricane (1), Flood (1), Biological (1).
How does Rusk County's disaster risk compare to the Texas average?
Rusk County has 5 disaster declarations, which is 52% higher than the Texas county average of 3.3 declarations. Compared to the national county average of 3.7, it is 34% higher.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Rusk County received?
Rusk County has received 4 major disaster declarations, representing 80% of all 5 disaster declarations. Major disaster declarations typically involve significant damage requiring federal assistance.
What types of storms are most common in Texas?
The most common storm types in Texas include Hail (15,525 events), Thunderstorm Wind (11,498 events), Drought (7,643 events). NOAA storm event data covers severe weather from 2015 to 2025.
What was the worst year for disasters in Rusk County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Rusk County was 2021, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 2020 to 2024.
What is the overall disaster risk level for Rusk County?
Based on FEMA declaration history, Rusk County has a moderate disaster risk level with 5 total declarations. This county has a moderate number of disaster declarations.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Rusk County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Rusk County, Texas has an overall risk score of 54.0 out of 100 (Relatively Low). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively High and community resilience is Very Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $14.9M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Rusk County?
Based on FEMA NRI data, the highest-risk natural hazard in Rusk County is Strong Wind (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Heat Wave (Relatively Moderate) and Ice Storm (Relatively Moderate). These scores are based on FEMA's analysis of historical event frequency, 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.
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 Rusk County
Rusk County, TX has 5 FEMA disaster declarations on record — a moderate historical disaster load, 52% above the Texas county average.
- Its most common federal declaration type is major disaster (4 of 5) — know the hazards most likely here before they happen. Texas overview
- See how this county ranks against the rest of the country for disaster frequency. Most-disaster rankings
- Read how to read FEMA declarations, NRI risk scores, and what they do and don't tell you. Disaster-data guide
Historical declaration counts describe past federal response, not a forecast. For current threats, follow the National Weather Service and local officials; in an emergency call 911.
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 →