FEMA declarations
120
High volume
State profile · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Arizona Natural Disasters
Arizona carries a substantial federal disaster record. 120 FEMA disaster declarations are on record, led by fire, with $366.3M in combined property and crop damage. The count also reflects declaration policy and program use; it is not a direct measure of physical hazard frequency. NOAA storm event data shows 9,541 recorded weather events resulting in 2,810 fatalities, figures the state uses to prioritize disaster-preparedness planning.
- 120
- FEMA declarations
- 9,541
- NOAA storm events
- 2,810
- Storm fatalities
- $366.3M
- Property + crop damage
The Arizona risk picture
3 of the 15 counties FEMA scores, 20%, carry a FEMA "high-risk" National Risk Index rating, with riverine flooding the single largest driver of expected annual loss statewide. Arizona has 37 Major Disaster (DR) declarations; FEMA authorizes Individual Assistance, Public Assistance, or both separately for each declaration. NOAA-tracked storms have caused 344 injuries statewide.
- 20%
- of counties rated high-risk by FEMA National Risk Index
- 120
- FEMA disaster declarations on record
- $366.3M
- in tracked property + crop damage
- 5,252
- NFIP flood insurance claims filed statewide
FEMA's National Risk Index and NOAA's Storm Events Database measure different things: modeled long-run risk vs. observed severe-weather events. Storm Events is a reported dataset, so its counts track what was observed and logged, not every event that occurred, and reporting is denser where more people live. See the methodology for how they relate.
Major Disaster share
31%
Mixed major share
NOAA storm events
9,541
Observed severe-weather records
How does Arizona compare?
Arizona vs. every U.S. state
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time
120 Top 14% higher than 86% of 59 states and territories
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more states and territories. 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
Arizona county risk-score spread
FEMA National Risk Index composite scores, 0–100
84.5 27th percentile higher than 27% of 15 county composite scores
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more county composite scores. 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 National Risk Index (NRI), county composite scores · 2026-08-25
The declaration chart counts past federal actions. The county score chart summarizes FEMA's modeled National Risk Index composite; it is not a forecast, and a state average does not describe every county.
Do more storms mean more federal disasters?
Arizona sits at the 85th percentile of FEMA declaration volume and the 38th percentile of NOAA storm-event volume among 55 states and territories, those two ranks are not interchangeable.
FEMA declaration rank vs NOAA storm-event rank
Read the chart, every state as text
Percentiles are within this release's state/territory sample. Raw counts are the underlying FEMA and NOAA totals.
| State | FEMA decls | FEMA %ile | NOAA storms | NOAA %ile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 396 | 98 | 23,694 | 93 |
| Texas | 389 | 96 | 53,309 | 98 |
| Oklahoma | 258 | 95 | 23,896 | 95 |
| Washington | 215 | 93 | 4,408 | 22 |
| Florida | 188 | 91 | 12,838 | 55 |
| Oregon | 169 | 89 | 3,695 | 20 |
| New Mexico | 126 | 87 | 10,974 | 45 |
| Arizona | 120 | 85 | 9,541 | 38 |
| New York | 118 | 84 | 21,653 | 82 |
| Montana | 112 | 82 | 13,576 | 56 |
| Colorado | 111 | 78 | 18,340 | 73 |
| Louisiana | 111 | 78 | 11,204 | 47 |
| Nevada | 110 | 76 | 4,534 | 24 |
| Alabama | 102 | 75 | 14,583 | 64 |
| Kentucky | 98 | 71 | 19,947 | 78 |
| Mississippi | 98 | 71 | 14,100 | 62 |
| Tennessee | 97 | 69 | 16,645 | 69 |
| South Dakota | 96 | 67 | 22,759 | 87 |
| Alaska | 94 | 64 | 2,683 | 15 |
| Kansas | 94 | 64 | 25,115 | 96 |
| Arkansas | 87 | 60 | 13,637 | 58 |
| Nebraska | 87 | 60 | 20,136 | 80 |
| Missouri | 86 | 58 | 22,952 | 89 |
| North Carolina | 85 | 56 | 16,367 | 67 |
| West Virginia | 84 | 55 | 12,026 | 49 |
| Georgia | 81 | 51 | 16,676 | 71 |
| Minnesota | 81 | 51 | 19,109 | 75 |
| Iowa | 78 | 49 | 21,883 | 84 |
| Virginia | 77 | 47 | 23,584 | 91 |
| North Dakota | 75 | 45 | 10,818 | 44 |
| Hawaii | 72 | 44 | 6,200 | 31 |
| Maine | 71 | 42 | 4,781 | 27 |
| Illinois | 68 | 40 | 22,088 | 85 |
| Pennsylvania | 64 | 38 | 19,427 | 76 |
| New Hampshire | 63 | 36 | 2,547 | 11 |
| Vermont | 62 | 35 | 3,449 | 18 |
| Idaho | 60 | 31 | 5,142 | 29 |
| Ohio | 60 | 31 | 16,184 | 65 |
| Massachusetts | 59 | 25 | 6,781 | 33 |
| New Jersey | 59 | 25 | 8,218 | 35 |
| Utah | 59 | 25 | 4,578 | 25 |
| Wisconsin | 56 | 24 | 13,807 | 60 |
| Indiana | 54 | 22 | 12,687 | 53 |
| Puerto Rico | 51 | 18 | 2,944 | 16 |
| South Carolina | 51 | 18 | 10,520 | 42 |
| Michigan | 46 | 16 | 9,052 | 36 |
| Wyoming | 45 | 15 | 12,494 | 51 |
| Connecticut | 43 | 13 | 2,622 | 13 |
| Maryland | 38 | 11 | 10,290 | 40 |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | 33 | 9 | 88 | 0 |
| Rhode Island | 31 | 7 | 924 | 7 |
| Delaware | 26 | 5 | 1,475 | 9 |
| Guam | 25 | 4 | 258 | 2 |
| District of Columbia | 24 | 2 | 452 | 5 |
| American Samoa | 17 | 0 | 292 | 4 |
What shapes Arizona's record?
FEMA declaration types in Arizona
Wider bars = more declarations of that incident type
- Fire
Fire
82 declarations
- Flood 17
Flood
17 declarations
- Severe Storm 15
Severe Storm
15 declarations
- Biological 3
Biological
3 declarations
- Drought 1
Drought
1 declarations
- Hurricane 1
Hurricane
1 declarations
- Freezing 1
Freezing
1 declarations
What this shows Fire leads Arizona's FEMA declaration mix with 82 records among the types shown.
NOAA storm events by year in Arizona
Reported severe-weather events, 2015-2025 catalog window
Peak year in this series: 2022 (1,419 events). Counts are reported events, not a complete census.
55 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Arizona · PlainHazard-derived composite from federal records
This 0–100 index is an explicit PlainHazard composite mixing OpenFEMA declaration totals (1953–present) with NOAA Storm Events (2015–2025), different windows and event definitions, disclosed weights on the methodology page . 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
120 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.4x state average)
NOAA Storm Events (2015–2025) Moderate
11/25
9541 NOAA storm events in the 2015–2025 extract (0.9x median state)
NOAA Damage (2015–2025) Low
6/25
Recorded NOAA property+crop damage in the 2015–2025 extract (0.6x median state)
Hazard Diversity Very High
18/20
7 different disaster types declared in Arizona
What does Arizona's hazard record show?
FEMA disaster declarations
Arizona (AZ) has a high level of federal declaration activity, with 120 FEMA declaration records, including 37 Major Disaster declarations (DR). A DR may authorize Individual Assistance, Public Assistance, or both; those program approvals are not implied by the DR count. The dominant declaration type is Fire, followed by Flood (17), Severe Storm (15), Biological (3). Declaration counts at the state level reflect the cumulative federal footprint: large multi-county events count once per state, but repeat hazard patterns across decades are visible in the breakdown below.
Flood exposure & where to dig deeper
Flood exposure is quantified separately through the National Flood Insurance Program. Policyholders across 15Arizona counties have filed 5,252 NFIP claims totaling $61.9M, or an average of $11.8K per claim. NFIP data captures only insured flood losses, so uninsured flood damage and storm-surge losses outside mapped high-risk zones remain invisible in this figure. The highest-Expected-Annual-Loss hazard across the state is Riverine Flooding, estimated at $2.0B annually. Drill into individual counties for localized risk, read FEMA's hazard-specific briefings, and review insurance and flood-zone designations, state-level averages can mask sharp county-to-county differences in exposure and resilience.
NOAA storm events & FEMA National Risk Index
NOAA's Storm Events Database adds the near-term severe-weather lens. Between 2015 and 2025, Arizona recorded 9,541 individual storm events, causing 2,810 fatalities and 344 injuries, with combined property and crop damage estimated at $366.3M. The most frequent event types in the state are Flash Flood (2,094 events), Excessive Heat (1,812 events), Thunderstorm Wind (1,680 events). Across the 15counties FEMA scores here, its National Risk Index flags 3 as high-risk, with an average county Risk Index score (FEMA's own formula, distinct from our Historical Activity tool below) of 84.5/100.
What this count is, and is not. Storm Events is a reported database: NOAA compiles it from National Weather Service offices, trained spotters, law enforcement, and the public. It is a record of what was observed and logged, not a complete census of severe weather. Densely populated areas report more events than sparsely populated ones with similar meteorological exposure, and detection has improved over time, so an event count is not a like-for-like measure of hazard between places or across decades. Damage figures are field estimates, not audited losses. See methodology.
Disaster Types in Arizona
Share of this state's FEMA declarations; the bar chart above is the same mix as counts.
Fire
68.3%
82 declarations
Flood
14.2%
17 declarations
Severe Storm
12.5%
15 declarations
Biological
2.5%
3 declarations
Drought
0.8%
1 declarations
Hurricane
0.8%
1 declarations
Freezing
0.8%
1 declarations
Storm Events by Type
NOAA storm event data for Arizona (2015-2025).
| Event Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flash Flood | 2,094 | 45 | 18 | $149.9M |
| Excessive Heat | 1,812 | 1,497 | 120 | $0 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 1,680 | 3 | 19 | $75.9M |
| Heat | 727 | 1,206 | 39 | $0 |
| High Wind | 446 | 0 | 0 | $734.0K |
| Dust Storm | 443 | 6 | 28 | $1.5M |
| Heavy Snow | 404 | 0 | 43 | $55.0K |
| Hail | 401 | 0 | 6 | $5.5M |
| Drought | 396 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| Heavy Rain | 248 | 2 | 13 | $1.9M |
| Wildfire | 189 | 1 | 18 | $105.4M |
| Flood | 184 | 10 | 0 | $14.0M |
| Lightning | 81 | 4 | 30 | $3.7M |
| Winter Storm | 76 | 5 | 1 | $202.0K |
| Funnel Cloud | 65 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| Tornado | 63 | 0 | 5 | $965.0K |
| Dense Fog | 58 | 2 | 2 | $50.0K |
| Strong Wind | 54 | 3 | 1 | $327.8K |
| Cold/Wind Chill | 33 | 21 | 0 | $5.0K |
| Winter Weather | 26 | 3 | 0 | $115.0K |
Storm Events by Year
| Year | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 896 | 165 | 50 | $37.6M |
| 2024 | 688 | 266 | 10 | $39.7M |
| 2023 | 1,012 | 771 | 21 | $19.6M |
| 2022 | 1,419 | 439 | 4 | $44.5M |
| 2021 | 1,301 | 348 | 26 | $105.0M |
| 2020 | 816 | 345 | 12 | $3.9M |
| 2019 | 824 | 185 | 21 | $15.1M |
| 2018 | 1,125 | 255 | 59 | $67.5M |
| 2017 | 498 | 13 | 13 | $11.7M |
| 2016 | 444 | 13 | 58 | $6.3M |
| 2015 | 518 | 10 | 70 | $10.7M |
FEMA Disaster Declarations
How the 120 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download all 120 declarations as CSV . Source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
120 unique disaster declarations in Arizona.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4911 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2026-05-29 |
| 5585 | CODY FIRE | FM | Fire | 2025-05-22 |
| 5584 | GREER FIRE | FM | Fire | 2025-05-14 |
| 4840 | FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2024-10-25 |
| 4833 | WATCH FIRE | DR | Fire | 2024-10-04 |
| 5508 | WATCH FIRE | FM | Fire | 2024-07-13 |
| 5505 | SHAKE FIRE | FM | Fire | 2024-07-09 |
| 5501 | BOULDER VIEW FIRE | FM | Fire | 2024-06-28 |
| 5496 | ROSE FIRE | FM | Fire | 2024-06-12 |
| 5493 | SIMMONS FIRE | FM | Fire | 2024-05-29 |
| 5466 | DIAMOND FIRE | FM | Fire | 2023-06-28 |
| 4703 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2023-04-11 |
| 4681 | FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2022-12-30 |
| 4668 | SEVERE STORMS | DR | Severe Storm | 2022-09-02 |
| 5441 | PIPELINE FIRE | FM | Fire | 2022-06-12 |
| 5435 | CROOKS FIRE | FM | Fire | 2022-04-19 |
| 5434 | TUNNEL 2 FIRE | FM | Fire | 2022-04-19 |
| 4620 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2021-09-13 |
| 5389 | TELEGRAPH FIRE | FM | Fire | 2021-06-06 |
| 5387 | SPUR FIRE | FM | Fire | 2021-05-27 |
| 5385 | MARGO FIRE | FM | Fire | 2021-04-08 |
| 4582 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2021-02-02 |
| 5340 | GRIFFIN FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-08-26 |
| 5315 | AVONDALE FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-06-27 |
| 5314 | AQUILA FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-06-23 |
| 5313 | BUSH FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-06-20 |
| 5312 | BIG HORN FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-06-11 |
| 5311 | OCOTILLO FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-05-30 |
| 5310 | EAST DESERT FIRE | FM | Fire | 2020-05-18 |
| 4524 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-04-04 |
| 3442 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 5284 | MUSEUM FIRE | FM | Fire | 2019-07-22 |
| 4436 | SNOWSTORM AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2019-05-21 |
| 4409 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2018-11-30 |
| 4389 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND LANDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2018-08-31 |
| 5238 | 89 EAST FIRE | FM | Fire | 2018-05-11 |
| 5236 | TINDER FIRE | FM | Fire | 2018-04-29 |
| 5188 | ROACH FIRE | FM | Fire | 2017-07-08 |
| 5186 | GOODWIN FIRE | FM | Fire | 2017-06-25 |
| 5183 | LIZARD FIRE | FM | Fire | 2017-06-11 |
| 5125 | TENDERFOOT FIRE | FM | Fire | 2016-06-08 |
| 5095 | WILLOW FIRE | FM | Fire | 2015-08-09 |
| 5086 | KEARNY RIVER FIRE | FM | Fire | 2015-06-17 |
| 5083 | SLIDE FIRE | FM | Fire | 2014-11-06 |
| 4203 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Flood | 2014-11-05 |
| 5033 | DEAN PEAK FIRE | FM | Fire | 2013-07-02 |
| 5032 | YARNELL HILL FIRE | FM | Fire | 2013-06-30 |
| 5029 | DOCE FIRE | FM | Fire | 2013-06-19 |
| 4104 | SEVERE FREEZE | DR | Freezing | 2013-03-05 |
| 2919 | MONUMENT FIRE | FM | Fire | 2011-06-12 |
Showing 50 of 120 declarations.
FEMA National Risk Index
Composite natural hazard risk scores for Arizona counties based on FEMA's National Risk Index.
Avg County Risk Score
84.5/100
High Risk Counties
3
of 15 counties
Top Hazard by EAL
Riverine Flooding
$2.0B annual loss est.
Top 5 Hazards by Expected Annual Loss
#1
Riverine Flooding
$2.0B EAL
#2
Heat Wave
$1.2B EAL
#3
Wildfire
$228.3M EAL
#4
Earthquake
$103.4M EAL
#5
Hail
$29.1M EAL
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) EAL = Expected Annual Loss. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
National Flood Insurance Program claims across Arizona from FEMA NFIP data.
Total Claims
5,252
Total Paid
$61.9M
Avg Per Claim
$11.8K
Counties With Claims
15
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
Counties in Arizona
15 counties with FEMA disaster data. Declaration counts measure past federal action; NRI rating is FEMA's modeled composite, so a high count is not a high rating.
| # | County | Disasters | NRI rating | Major |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maricopa County | 26 | Very High | 13 |
| 2 | Yavapai County | 26 | Relatively Moderate | 10 |
| 3 | Coconino County | 24 | Relatively Moderate | 10 |
| 4 | Gila County | 23 | Relatively Moderate | 13 |
| 5 | Pinal County | 23 | Relatively Moderate | 10 |
| 6 | Navajo County | 21 | Relatively Moderate | 12 |
| 7 | Apache County | 16 | Relatively Low | 9 |
| 8 | Mohave County | 15 | Relatively High | 9 |
| 9 | Pima County | 15 | Relatively High | 11 |
| 10 | Cochise County | 14 | Relatively Moderate | 6 |
| 11 | Greenlee County | 13 | Very Low | 10 |
| 12 | Graham County | 13 | Relatively Low | 10 |
| 13 | Santa Cruz County | 8 | Relatively Moderate | 5 |
| 14 | La Paz County | 7 | Relatively Moderate | 5 |
| 15 | Yuma County | 6 | Relatively Moderate | 4 |
Highest-risk counties by FEMA National Risk Index
Declaration counts above measure past federal action; FEMA's NRI is a composite of Expected Annual Loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience. By that separate measure the highest-risk counties in Arizona are Maricopa (Very High), Pima (Relatively High), Mohave (Relatively High), Coconino (Relatively Moderate), Pinal (Relatively Moderate). Compare any county's recorded history with the Historical Activity tool.
All 15 counties in Arizona are listed above.
Compare beyond this profile
Nationwide states with similar NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Arizona: nearest states by average county National Risk Index composite and nearest FEMA declaration count (floor ≥5 records). Record similarity only, not a forecast of the next hazard.
Similar average NRI composite
Nearest states by mean county FEMA NRI score. Arizona: 84.5 across 15 scored counties.
Similar declaration volume
Nearest states by FEMA declaration count. Arizona: 120. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Disaster Preparedness Guides
Learn more about natural disaster risk, preparedness, and data interpretation.
Preparing for Natural Disasters
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Hazard Risk by Region
How natural disaster risk varies across different US regions.
Climate Change & Disasters
How climate trends are changing the frequency and severity of natural disasters.
Frequently Asked Questions
What natural disasters affect Arizona?
Arizona is affected by fire, flood, severe storm, biological. Topping the list is Fire, based on 120 FEMA disaster declarations on record.
How many FEMA disaster declarations has Arizona had?
Arizona has received 120 FEMA disaster declarations, including 37 major disaster declarations. These declarations span multiple disaster types including Fire (82), Flood (17), Severe Storm (15).
What severe weather events are most common in Arizona?
The most common severe weather events in Arizona include flash flood (2,094 events), excessive heat (1,812 events), thunderstorm wind (1,680 events). Over that 2015-2025 NOAA record, these events resulted in 2,810 fatalities and $366.3M in property and crop damage.
How active is Arizona's federal disaster declaration record?
Arizona has a high level of historical federal declaration activity, based on 120 FEMA declaration records. This band is not a future-risk forecast. Separately, NOAA storm events from 2015-2025 record 2,810 fatalities and 344 injuries. Combined NOAA-listed property and crop losses total $366.3M.
How many flood insurance claims has Arizona had?
Arizona has 5,252 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims with $61.9M total paid out. Claims average $11.8K, with 15 counties reporting flood insurance claims.
Which counties in Arizona have the most disaster declarations?
Among 15 counties in Arizona, those with the most FEMA declaration records include Maricopa (26 declarations), Yavapai (26 declarations), Coconino (24 declarations). County-level records show where federal declarations have concentrated across the state.
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations, NOAA Storm Events Database (2015-2025) For informational purposes only
What this means for Arizona
Maricopa alone accounts for 22% of Arizona's FEMA disaster declarations, out of 15 counties tracked statewide.
- The declaration record is uneven within the state: Maricopa and Yavapai carry the most FEMA declarations. Browse counties
- See how Arizona ranks against other states for disaster frequency and damage. State rankings
- Learn what FEMA declarations, NRI risk scores, and damage figures do and don't tell you. Disaster-data guide
Historical declaration counts and damage totals describe past federal response, not a forecast. For current threats, follow the National Weather Service and local officials; in an emergency call 911.
PlainHazard derives this presentation from FEMA's Disaster Declarations Summaries. Its county comparison covers 3,266 U.S. counties and county equivalents in this database, refreshed as of 2026-08-25. Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Related
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.