Editorial
Most disaster-prone counties in Ohio
Ohio has 1,289 county-level FEMA disaster declarations across 88 counties. The dominant hazard type is severe storm. Belmont County leads with 22 declarations, followed by Jefferson County and Monroe County.
This ranking shows every county in Ohio ordered by how many times FEMA has issued a disaster declaration affecting it. Counties near coastlines, river systems, or wildfire corridors tend to appear at the top because the same geographic exposure produces recurring events across decades.
Each county links to a full disaster history page with the complete declaration timeline, hazard type breakdown, decade trends, and whatever FEMA spending data is available. For a national view, see the most disaster-prone counties in America page.
Ohio ranking
All counties by FEMA declaration count
| # | County | Declarations | Top hazard | First year | Latest year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Belmont County | 22 | Severe Storm | 1972 | 2020 |
| 2 | Jefferson County | 22 | Severe Storm | 1972 | 2020 |
| 3 | Monroe County | 22 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 4 | Franklin County | 20 | Severe Storm | 1974 | 2020 |
| 5 | Licking County | 20 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2024 |
| 6 | Washington County | 20 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 7 | Adams County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 8 | Athens County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 9 | Brown County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 10 | Cuyahoga County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 11 | Lorain County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 12 | Perry County | 19 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 13 | Clermont County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 14 | Columbiana County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 15 | Hamilton County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 16 | Harrison County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 17 | Hocking County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 18 | Meigs County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 19 | Noble County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 20 | Richland County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2024 |
| 21 | Scioto County | 18 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 22 | Gallia County | 17 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 23 | Guernsey County | 17 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 24 | Morgan County | 17 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 25 | Muskingum County | 17 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 26 | Pike County | 17 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 27 | Coshocton County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 28 | Greene County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 29 | Jackson County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 30 | Lawrence County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1978 | 2020 |
| 31 | Lucas County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 32 | Morrow County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 33 | Ross County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 34 | Vinton County | 16 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 35 | Ashtabula County | 15 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 36 | Crawford County | 15 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2024 |
| 37 | Delaware County | 15 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2024 |
| 38 | Lake County | 15 | Flood | 1969 | 2020 |
| 39 | Miami County | 15 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2024 |
| 40 | Pickaway County | 15 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 41 | Shelby County | 15 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 42 | Butler County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 43 | Erie County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 44 | Hancock County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2024 |
| 45 | Huron County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 46 | Logan County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1978 | 2024 |
| 47 | Medina County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 48 | Mercer County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2024 |
| 49 | Summit County | 14 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 50 | Auglaize County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1978 | 2024 |
| 51 | Darke County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2024 |
| 52 | Fairfield County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 53 | Geauga County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 54 | Knox County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 55 | Montgomery County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 56 | Ottawa County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 57 | Paulding County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1974 | 2020 |
| 58 | Putnam County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1974 | 2020 |
| 59 | Sandusky County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 60 | Seneca County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 61 | Tuscarawas County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 62 | Union County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1978 | 2024 |
| 63 | Van Wert County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 64 | Warren County | 13 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 65 | Ashland County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 66 | Hardin County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 67 | Highland County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 68 | Holmes County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 69 | Madison County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1974 | 2020 |
| 70 | Mahoning County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1978 | 2020 |
| 71 | Marion County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 72 | Portage County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 73 | Stark County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 74 | Trumbull County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 75 | Wyandot County | 12 | Severe Storm | 1978 | 2020 |
| 76 | Carroll County | 11 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 77 | Champaign County | 11 | Severe Storm | 1978 | 2020 |
| 78 | Clark County | 11 | Severe Storm | 1974 | 2020 |
| 79 | Fayette County | 11 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 80 | Preble County | 11 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 81 | Allen County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1965 | 2020 |
| 82 | Clinton County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1968 | 2020 |
| 83 | Henry County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1977 | 2020 |
| 84 | Wayne County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 85 | Wood County | 10 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 86 | Fulton County | 9 | Severe Storm | 1969 | 2020 |
| 87 | Defiance County | 8 | Biological | 1977 | 2020 |
| 88 | Williams County | 8 | Biological | 1978 | 2020 |