Avalanche

Hazard in Geological and Other Natural Hazards

A mountain hazard that threatens backcountry users, highways and ski-area infrastructure during the snow season.

Plans also call it: snow avalanche

Talk to us about AvalancheAll 73 hazards →

What you’d hand your council

The first page of a Avalanche evidence brief: likelihood, impact and readiness on your own scale, every figure sourced.

Evidence brief for Cedar Ridge County (example)

September 14, 2026

Avalanche

Hazard in Geological and Other Natural Hazards, on the established threats & hazards list

Impact
5432112345

Likelihood

Likelihood
3

Possible — Expected occasionally — roughly once in 10 to 50 years (2–10% chance in any year).

Impact
5

Catastrophic — Overwhelming effects — mass casualties possible, widespread destruction, essential services out for a month or more, long-term recovery requiring state and federal assistance.

Readiness
2

Low — Some elements of capability are in place, but important gaps remain that could significantly limit the organization's ability to perform effectively. Additional development is needed before the capability can be relied upon.

  • 2source documents
  • 58verified mentions
  • —federal declarations
  • 91.6NRI score, relatively high
Worked example: Cedar Ridge County is fictional. The scores illustrate the format and are nobody's decision. Open a full sample brief →

The national record

FEMA National Risk Index: Avalanche

$420M
expected loss a year, nationally
98
counties rated high or very high

Your county’s own rating is the first thing we pull.

How it maps

The same hazard in the vocabularies your plan and FEMA already use.

FEMA National Risk Index
Avalanche (AVLN)one of the 18 hazards NRI scores per county
FEMA declaration incident type
Not covered
NOAA Storm Events type
Avalanche
Hazzard category
Geological and Other Natural Hazards, natural hazards

The national record

What the federal data says about Avalanche

The same national sources a Hazzard brief starts from. For your jurisdiction we narrow each one to your county and its neighbors.

Where Avalanche is rated high

Share of each state's counties FEMA rates Relatively High or Very High

Alabama: not rated for AvalancheAlaska: 10 of 29 counties rated high (34%) · $61M expected loss a yearArizona: 0 of 14 counties rated high (0%) · $463K expected loss a yearArkansas: not rated for AvalancheCalifornia: 10 of 52 counties rated high (19%) · $23M expected loss a yearColorado: 23 of 43 counties rated high (53%) · $96M expected loss a yearConnecticut: 0 of 2 counties rated high (0%) · $1K expected loss a yearDelaware: not rated for AvalancheDistrict of Columbia: not rated for AvalancheFlorida: not rated for AvalancheGeorgia: not rated for AvalancheHawaii: not rated for AvalancheIdaho: 12 of 42 counties rated high (29%) · $37M expected loss a yearIllinois: not rated for AvalancheIndiana: not rated for AvalancheIowa: not rated for AvalancheKansas: not rated for AvalancheKentucky: 0 of 28 counties rated high (0%) · $35K expected loss a yearLouisiana: not rated for AvalancheMaine: 0 of 12 counties rated high (0%) · $16K expected loss a yearMaryland: 0 of 7 counties rated high (0%) · $2K expected loss a yearMassachusetts: 0 of 4 counties rated high (0%) · $4K expected loss a yearMichigan: not rated for AvalancheMinnesota: not rated for AvalancheMississippi: not rated for AvalancheMissouri: not rated for AvalancheMontana: 11 of 42 counties rated high (26%) · $50M expected loss a yearNebraska: not rated for AvalancheNevada: 0 of 17 counties rated high (0%) · $3M expected loss a yearNew Hampshire: 1 of 9 counties rated high (11%) · $5M expected loss a yearNew Jersey: 0 of 4 counties rated high (0%) · $1K expected loss a yearNew Mexico: 1 of 29 counties rated high (3%) · $2M expected loss a yearNew York: 0 of 44 counties rated high (0%) · $485K expected loss a yearNorth Carolina: not rated for AvalancheNorth Dakota: not rated for AvalancheOhio: not rated for AvalancheOklahoma: not rated for AvalancheOregon: 4 of 36 counties rated high (11%) · $8M expected loss a yearPennsylvania: 0 of 59 counties rated high (0%) · $74K expected loss a yearRhode Island: not rated for AvalancheSouth Carolina: not rated for AvalancheSouth Dakota: 0 of 5 counties rated high (0%) · $0K expected loss a yearTennessee: not rated for AvalancheTexas: 0 of 8 counties rated high (0%) · $1K expected loss a yearUtah: 12 of 29 counties rated high (41%) · $53M expected loss a yearVermont: 0 of 13 counties rated high (0%) · $471K expected loss a yearVirginia: 0 of 50 counties rated high (0%) · $71K expected loss a yearWashington: 9 of 37 counties rated high (24%) · $43M expected loss a yearWest Virginia: 0 of 48 counties rated high (0%) · $302K expected loss a yearWisconsin: not rated for AvalancheWyoming: 5 of 21 counties rated high (24%) · $38M expected loss a year
  • None
  • Up to 10%
  • 10–25%
  • 25–50%
  • Over 50%
  • Not rated
FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0, county table

In your plan

What a Avalanche profile needs, and where each part comes from

A local hazard mitigation plan profiles each hazard the same way (44 CFR 201.6). Here is how Hazzard fills each part for Avalanche.

  1. Location

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    National data

    FEMA's National Risk Index rates Avalanche for every county. We place yours against its neighbors and the state, then add what your plans map in more detail.

  2. Extent

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your documents

    The magnitude your plans use for Avalanche (a scale, a depth, an acreage, a duration), read from your documents and cited, so the profile states the strength you plan for.

  3. Previous occurrences

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    Your documents

    FEMA files no declaration type for Avalanche. The history comes from your after-action reports, incident records and plans.

  4. Probability of future events

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(i)

    National data

    NRI's annualized frequency for your county, and the declaration history, drafted into a likelihood on your own scale for your team to accept or change.

  5. Vulnerability and impacts

    44 CFR 201.6(c)(2)(ii)

    National data

    NRI's expected annual loss and social vulnerability for your county, the Census population profile and HHS emPOWER counts, with the impacts your plans already describe.

  6. The assessment itself

    Your team decides

    Likelihood, impact and readiness for Avalanche are drafted with every source attached, and a person on your team accepts each one. Hazzard never records a score on its own.

How we can help

How we’d help you prepare for Avalanche

  1. 1

    We pull what the national record holds

    NRI ratings where FEMA models Avalanche, any declarations, and the drought-relevant climate record. Where nothing models it, we say so.

  2. 2

    We read your plans and studies

    Mitigation plan, geologic or drought studies you already have, so the evidence you own is cited alongside the federal figures.

  3. 3

    You leave with a cited brief

    Likelihood, impact and readiness for Avalanche on your own scale, every figure tied to its source, ready for the planning team or the council.

Also in Geological and Other Natural Hazards

Preparing for Avalanche

Give Avalanche the profile it deserves, even if it rarely makes the news.

Slow and rare hazards are the ones plans skim. We show what the national record says about yours, and where your plan has to rely on local knowledge instead. A person replies within one business day.

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