FEMA Records
13
Low volume
Michigan · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Van Buren County, MI
13 FEMA disaster declarations (1973-2020), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Flood.
- 13
- FEMA declarations
- 7
- Major disasters
- 60
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Flood
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Van Buren County. Its 13 FEMA declarations are 30% above the Michigan county mean and exceed the count for 17% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 40%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 40%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 13
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 31
- 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 Van Buren County compare?
Van Buren County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time
13 17th percentile higher than 17% 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
Van Buren County's FEMA Risk Index score
FEMA National Risk Index composite score vs. the Michigan county average
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Van Buren County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $9.2M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively Moderate), while Hail 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 Van Buren County's hazard record show?
FEMA National Risk Index
This county carries a high composite score on FEMA's National Risk Index, 60.5/100, rated Relatively Low. Its Expected Annual Loss rating is Relatively Low (roughly $20.4M in annualized losses), and a Relatively Moderate 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, Hail stands out as the sharpest exposure here, rated Relatively High. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 1.9 times per year here, based on 71 historical events on record.
Declaration frequency
The FEMA register is busy by both local and national comparisons. It contains 13 entries for Van Buren County, including 7 Major Disaster records, 30% above the Michigan county mean. Across the 47-year span, that works out to 0.3 declarations a year. Flood leads the file with 4 entries. Declaration type records the federal action taken, not every assistance program approved.
Reading the federal records together
This county has a small entry in FEMA's NFIP paid-claims table: 31 claims and $221.4K 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. Van Buren County's 13 federal records stand 30% above the Michigan county mean of 10.0. 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.
53 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Van Buren County, MI · 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
9/30
13 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (0.6x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
16/25
13 declarations (1.3x state county average of 10)
Major Disaster Share High
13/25
7 of 13 declarations are major disasters (54%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
15/20
6 different disaster types declared in Van Buren County
Historical Declaration Activity
Activity Band
High
vs. Michigan Avg
+30%
State avg: 10.0
vs. National Avg
-37%
National avg: 20.7
Avg Per Year
0.3
Over 47 years
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Van Buren 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
54%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
60
Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Van Buren 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Hail | Relatively High | an average of 1.9 times per year |
| Strong Wind | Relatively High | an average of 3.7 times per year |
| Ice Storm | Relatively High | roughly once every 1 years |
| Tornado | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 3 years |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Low | roughly once every 3 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 29 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Low | an average of 1.3 times per year |
| Landslide | Very Low | roughly once every 7 years |
| Earthquake | Very Low | roughly once every 1,007 years |
| Lightning | Relatively Low | an average of 36 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Relatively Low | 2.7 modeled event-days per year |
| Hurricane | Very Low | roughly once every 143 years |
| Wildfire | Very Low | roughly once every 73,076 years |
| Coastal Flooding | Very Low | roughly once every 76 years |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Snowstorm 4
Flood 4
Biological 2
Hurricane 1
Severe Storm 1
Tornado 1
What Flood declarations mean here
Flood is the most frequent declaration type on Van Buren County's record, 31% of its declarations. Federal flood declarations cover two mechanisms that behave very differently: riverine flooding, which builds over days as a watershed drains and is usually forecast well in advance, and flash flooding, which can arrive in under an hour from rainfall that fell somewhere upstream.
Flood is also the one hazard class where a second federal dataset exists for the same events. The National Flood Insurance Program records what was actually paid on insured losses, so it measures a narrower thing than the declaration count: uninsured damage, and flooding outside mapped special flood hazard areas, never enters it. Reading the two together is more informative than either alone.
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 - 7 53.8%
of all 13 declarations
Emergency - 6 46.2%
of all 13 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 1 | |
| 2001 | 1 | |
| 1999 | 1 | |
| 1986 | 1 | |
| 1980 | 2 | |
| 1978 | 1 | |
| 1977 | 1 | |
| 1975 | 1 | |
| 1973 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 13 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 13 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4494 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-27 |
| 3455 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 3225 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-07 |
| 1527 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-06-30 |
| 3160 | SNOW | EM | Snowstorm | 2001-01-10 |
| 3137 | MI - SEVERE WEATHER 1/2 /99 | EM | Snowstorm | 1999-01-27 |
| 774 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1986-09-18 |
| 631 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1980-09-08 |
| 621 | SEVERE STORMS & TORNADOES | DR | Tornado | 1980-05-16 |
| 3057 | BLIZZARDS & SNOWSTORMS | EM | Snowstorm | 1978-01-27 |
| 3030 | SNOWSTORMS | EM | Snowstorm | 1977-02-05 |
| 465 | SEVERE STORMS, HIGH WINDS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1975-04-26 |
| 371 | SEVERE STORMS & FLOODING | DR | Flood | 1973-04-12 |
Storm Events in Michigan
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Van Buren County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 3,010 | 10 | 18 | $173.8M |
| Winter Storm | 1,486 | 3 | 11 | $41.8M |
| Winter Weather | 1,254 | 21 | 38 | $892.0K |
| Hail | 962 | 0 | 0 | $77.1M |
| High Wind | 389 | 3 | 2 | $668.9M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
31
Total Paid
$221.4K
Avg Per Claim
$7.1K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 60.5/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$20.4M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively Moderate
Community Resilience
Very High
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Hail Relatively High
Strong Wind Relatively High
Ice Storm Relatively High
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Riverine Flooding Relatively Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Cold Wave Relatively Low
Landslide Very Low
Earthquake Very Low
Lightning Relatively Low
Heat Wave Relatively Low
Hurricane Very Low
Wildfire Very Low
Coastal Flooding Very Low
Drought No Rating
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: Hail
Hail is among the most expensive hazards in the model relative to how little it threatens life. It concentrates on roofs, vehicles and crops, and a single severe storm can generate an insurance loss across a metropolitan area without a single injury.
Worth noting for Van Buren County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Hail carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively High), while the county's declaration history is led by Flood. 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
Van Buren County's closest FEMA peer: Cheshire County, NH
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Van Buren County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Similar modeled NRI score
Van Buren County: NRI composite 60.5 (Relatively Low).
Similar Major-disaster share
Van Buren County: 7 of 13 of its declarations are Major.
Closest declaration profiles
Van Buren County shows 13 FEMA declarations, led by Flood.
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 Van Buren County - capture-dated entries only.
Further reading for this county
Most disaster-prone counties
With 13 FEMA declarations, Van Buren 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).
Related
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common disaster type in Van Buren County?
The most common disaster type in Van Buren County is Flood, with 4 declarations. Other disaster types include Snowstorm (4), Biological (2), Hurricane (1).
How does Van Buren County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Michigan average?
FEMA lists 13 declaration records for Van Buren County. That is 30% above the Michigan county mean of 10.0. Its count is also 37% below 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 Van Buren County received?
Van Buren County has received 7 major disaster declarations, representing 54% of all 13 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Van Buren County filed?
Van Buren County has 31 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $221.4K in payments, with an average of $7.1K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Van Buren County?
No. In Van Buren County, Hail has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively High), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $9.2M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Van Buren County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Van Buren County was 1980, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1973 to 2020.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Van Buren County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Van Buren County, Michigan has an overall risk score of 60.5 out of 100 (Relatively Low). The county's social vulnerability rating is Relatively Moderate and community resilience is Very High. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $20.4M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Van Buren County?
The top hazard flagged by FEMA's NRI for Van Buren County is Hail (risk rating: Relatively High). Other significant hazards include Strong Wind (Relatively High) and Ice Storm (Relatively High). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts hail here at an average of 1.9 times per year, drawn from 71 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.
What this means for Van Buren County
Van Buren County, MI has 13 federal declaration records, 30% more than the Michigan county mean of 10; its history sits in PlainHazard's high activity band.
- Within this above-state-average declaration file, major disaster leads with 7 of 13 records; the category describes past federal action, not the next likely hazard. Michigan overview
- The state benchmark and national rank point the same way: this count tops the Michigan mean and the totals for 17% of 3,266 U.S. counties. Most-disaster rankings
- A short NFIP claims file cannot establish low flood exposure; the data guide explains the limits of each federal measure. 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.