FEMA declarations
98
High volume
State profile · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Kentucky's federal declaration record sits near the middle of the state distribution. 98 FEMA disaster declarations are on record, led by severe storm, with $225.3M in combined property and crop damage. A moderate count like this can still mask a single catastrophic year rather than a steady annual pattern. NOAA storm event data shows 19,947 recorded weather events resulting in 265 fatalities, a toll that informs where the state directs disaster-preparedness resources.
The Kentucky risk picture
1 of the 120 counties FEMA scores, 1%, carry a FEMA "high-risk" National Risk Index rating, with riverine flooding the single largest driver of expected annual loss statewide. Kentucky has 81 Major Disaster (DR) declarations; FEMA authorizes Individual Assistance, Public Assistance, or both separately for each declaration. NOAA-tracked storms have caused 960 injuries 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.
FEMA declarations
98
High volume
Major Disaster share
83%
Mostly major
NOAA storm events
19,947
Observed severe-weather records
Kentucky vs. every U.S. state
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time
98 Top 27% higher than 73% 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 · 2026-08-03
Kentucky county risk-score spread
FEMA National Risk Index composite scores, 0–100
44.2 Top 42% higher than 58% of 120 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 · 2026-08-03
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.
Kentucky sits at the 71st percentile of FEMA declaration volume and the 78th percentile of NOAA storm-event volume among 55 states and territories, those two ranks are not interchangeable.
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 |
Wider bars = more declarations of that incident type
Severe Storm
40 declarations
Flood
27 declarations
Fire
8 declarations
Tornado
7 declarations
Snowstorm
5 declarations
Severe Ice Storm
3 declarations
Winter Storm
2 declarations
Biological
2 declarations
What this shows Severe Storm leads Kentucky's FEMA declaration mix with 40 records among the types shown.
NOAA storm events by year
Reported severe-weather events in Kentucky, 2015–2025 catalog window.
Peak year in this series: 2015 (2,457 events). Counts are reported events, not a complete census.
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Kentucky · 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
98 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.1x state average)
19947 NOAA storm events in the 2015–2025 extract (1.8x median state)
Recorded NOAA property+crop damage in the 2015–2025 extract (0.4x median state)
12 different disaster types declared in Kentucky
Flood exposure is quantified separately through the National Flood Insurance Program. Policyholders across 118Kentucky counties have filed 27,361 NFIP claims totaling $519.4M, or an average of $19.0K 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 $1.3B 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's Storm Events Database adds the near-term severe-weather lens. Between 2015 and 2025, Kentucky recorded 19,947 individual storm events, causing 265 fatalities and 960 injuries, with combined property and crop damage estimated at $225.3M. The most frequent event types in the state are Thunderstorm Wind (6,702 events), Flash Flood (1,757 events), Flood (1,646 events). Across the 120counties FEMA scores here, its National Risk Index flags 1 as high-risk, with an average county Risk Index score (FEMA's own formula, distinct from our Historical Activity tool below) of 44.2/100.
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.
Kentucky (KY) has a moderate level of federal declaration activity, with 98 FEMA declaration records, including 81 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 Severe Storm, followed by Flood (27), Fire (8), Tornado (7). 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.
NOAA storm event data for Kentucky (2015-2025).
| Event Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 6,702 | 9 | 56 | $55.2M |
| Flash Flood | 1,757 | 65 | 16 | $42.6M |
| Flood | 1,646 | 31 | 6 | $37.1M |
| Hail | 1,534 | 1 | 0 | $4.7M |
| Winter Weather | 1,079 | 14 | 54 | $655.0K |
| Strong Wind | 1,017 | 2 | 11 | $2.4M |
| Dense Fog | 1,006 | 1 | 2 | $20.0K |
| Winter Storm | 867 | 10 | 23 | $789.0K |
| Heavy Snow | 761 | 5 | 4 | $335.0K |
| Frost/Freeze | 694 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| Heat | 684 | 2 | 1 | $0 |
| Tornado | 414 | 98 | 720 | $65.6M |
| High Wind | 335 | 1 | 2 | $2.5M |
| Excessive Heat | 330 | 0 | 23 | $0 |
| Drought | 303 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| Heavy Rain | 207 | 1 | 0 | $851.0K |
| Ice Storm | 193 | 1 | 1 | $1.7M |
| Cold/Wind Chill | 151 | 11 | 2 | $10.0K |
| Lightning | 73 | 4 | 15 | $4.6M |
| Extreme Cold/Wind Chill | 58 | 7 | 4 | $305.0K |
| Year | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,099 | 36 | 28 | $32.3M |
| 2024 | 1,754 | 13 | 51 | $15.0M |
| 2023 | 1,617 | 8 | 21 | $14.8M |
| 2022 | 2,068 | 47 | 63 | $7.7M |
| 2021 | 1,627 | 85 | 625 | $13.0M |
| 2020 | 1,285 | 11 | 11 | $28.2M |
| 2019 | 1,522 | 13 | 12 | $13.3M |
| 2018 | 2,050 | 12 | 23 | $30.2M |
| 2017 | 1,345 | 5 | 14 | $28.1M |
| 2016 | 2,123 | 6 | 58 | $19.5M |
| 2015 | 2,457 | 29 | 54 | $17.2M |
How the 98 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download all 98 declarations as CSV . Source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
98 unique disaster declarations in Kentucky.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4913 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR | Winter Storm | 2026-05-29 |
| 3633 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Winter Storm | 2026-01-24 |
| 4875 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 2025-05-23 |
| 4864 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2025-04-24 |
| 3626 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | EM | Severe Storm | 2025-04-03 |
| 4860 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2025-02-24 |
| 3624 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND LANDSLIDES | EM | Severe Storm | 2025-02-16 |
| 4848 | REMNANTS OF HURRICANE HELENE | DR | Tropical Storm | 2024-11-26 |
| 4804 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2024-07-23 |
| 4782 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2024-05-22 |
| 4711 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2023-05-09 |
| 4702 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2023-04-10 |
| 4663 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2022-07-29 |
| 4643 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2022-02-27 |
| 4630 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | DR | Tornado | 2021-12-12 |
| 3575 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, AND TORNADOES | EM | Tornado | 2021-12-11 |
| 4595 | SEVERE, STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2021-04-23 |
| 4592 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2021-03-31 |
| 4540 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2020-04-24 |
| 4497 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-28 |
| 3469 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4428 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2019-04-17 |
| 4361 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2018-04-26 |
| 4358 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2018-04-12 |
| 5166 | SOUTHEASTERN KENTUCKY FIRE COMPLEX | FM | Fire | 2016-11-20 |
| 5158 | EAGLES NEST FIRE | FM | Fire | 2016-11-08 |
| 4278 | SEVERE STORM, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-08-26 |
| 4239 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDE | DR | Severe Storm | 2015-08-12 |
| 4218 | SEVERE WINTER STORM, SNOWSTORM, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2015-05-12 |
| 4217 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Flood | 2015-05-01 |
| 4216 | SEVERE WINTER STORMS, SNOWSTORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Snowstorm | 2015-04-30 |
| 4196 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, LANDSLIDES, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2014-09-30 |
| 4057 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2012-03-06 |
| 4008 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2011-07-25 |
| 1976 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2011-05-04 |
| 1925 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2010-07-23 |
| 1912 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, MUDSLIDES, AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 2010-05-11 |
| 1855 | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2009-08-14 |
| 1841 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2009-05-29 |
| 1818 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2009-02-05 |
| 3302 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Severe Ice Storm | 2009-01-28 |
| 1802 | SEVERE WIND STORM ASSOCIATED WITH TROPICAL DEPRESSION IKE | DR | Severe Storm | 2008-10-09 |
| 1757 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, MUDSLIDES, AND LANDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2008-05-19 |
| 1746 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND | DR | Severe Storm | 2008-02-21 |
| 1703 | SEVERE STORMS, FLOODING, MUDSLIDES, AND ROCKSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2007-05-25 |
| 1617 | SEVERE STORMS AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 2005-12-01 |
| 3231 | HURRICANE KATRINA | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-10 |
| 1578 | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND RECORD SNOW | DR | Snowstorm | 2005-02-08 |
| 1537 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-08-06 |
| 1523 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, FLOODING, AND MUDSLIDES | DR | Severe Storm | 2004-06-10 |
Showing 50 of 98 declarations.
Composite natural hazard risk scores for Kentucky counties based on FEMA's National Risk Index.
Avg County Risk Score
44.2/100
High Risk Counties
1
of 120 counties
Top Hazard by EAL
Riverine Flooding
$1.3B annual loss est.
#1
Riverine Flooding
$1.3B EAL
#2
Tornado
$333.3M EAL
#3
Earthquake
$241.8M EAL
#4
Cold Wave
$169.0M EAL
#5
Strong Wind
$112.8M EAL
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) EAL = Expected Annual Loss. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri
National Flood Insurance Program claims across Kentucky from FEMA NFIP data.
Total Claims
27,361
Total Paid
$519.4M
Avg Per Claim
$19.0K
Counties With Claims
118
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
120 counties with FEMA disaster data.
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 Kentucky are Jefferson (98.3), Floyd (94.2), Fayette (92.0), McCracken (89.7), Warren (88.5). Compare any county's recorded history with the Historical Activity tool.
All 120 counties in Kentucky are listed above.
Learn more about natural disaster risk, preparedness, and data interpretation.
Preparing for Natural Disasters
Essential steps to prepare your household for the most common natural hazards.
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.
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations, NOAA Storm Events Database (2015-2025) For informational purposes only
What this means for Kentucky
Magoffin alone accounts for 50% of Kentucky's FEMA disaster declarations, out of 120 counties tracked statewide.
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 2026-08-03. Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
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.