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Winter Weather

Hazard in Weather Hazards

A forecastable, season-long hazard of snow, ice and wind that closes roads, downs lines and strands the people and plows trying to move.

Includes: Ice Storm, Winter Storm/Heavy Snow, Blizzard

  • Ice Storm. A weight-driven infrastructure hazard: glaze ice brings down trees and power lines, leaving outages that can last for days.
  • Winter Storm/Heavy Snow. A forecastable but disruptive hazard that closes roads, strands travelers and strains plowing, sheltering and power restoration.
  • Blizzard. A visibility-and-wind hazard where blowing snow makes travel impossible and cuts off rural communities and emergency response.
See a sample briefBook a walkthroughAll 31 hazards →

Sample brief

The first page of a Winter Weather brief: likelihood, impact and readiness on your own scale, with each figure sourced.

Evidence brief for Cedar Ridge County (example)

September 14, 2026

Winter Weather

Hazard in Weather Hazards, on the established threats & hazards list

Impact
5432112345

Likelihood

Likelihood
2

Unlikely — Possible but infrequent — roughly once in 50 to 100 years (1–2% chance in any year).

Impact
4

Major — Severe effects — casualties possible, serious damage across a significant share of the jurisdiction, essential services disrupted for weeks, outside assistance needed.

Readiness
3

Moderate — The organization has a generally established capability to manage this threat or hazard, but identifiable gaps remain. The organization could likely perform many required actions, though effectiveness may vary depending on conditions, staffing, resources, or complexity.

  • 2source documents
  • 58verified mentions
  • 2federal 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: Ice Storm, Winter Weather

$1.6B
expected loss a year, nationally, across 2 NRI hazards
536
counties rated high or very high for Ice Storm

NRI scores Winter Weather as 2 hazards, so the loss is summed and the county count is Ice Storm's, the larger of them. 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
Ice Storm (ISTM), Winter Weather (WNTW)2 of the 18 hazards NRI scores per county: Ice Storm $1.0B, 536 counties high; Winter Weather $552M, 467 counties high. The headline loss sums them; the county count is Ice Storm's
FEMA declaration incident type
Severe Ice Storm, Snowstorm, Winter Storm282 declarations on record
NOAA Storm Events type
Ice Storm, Winter Storm, Winter Weather, Heavy Snow, Lake-Effect Snow, Sleet, Blizzard
Hazzard category
Weather Hazards, natural hazardsincludes Ice Storm, Winter Storm/Heavy Snow, Blizzard

How it connects

Can lead to

The national record

What the federal data says about Winter Weather

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

NRI scores Winter Weather as 2 hazards: Ice Storm (ISTM), Winter Weather (WNTW). The map is the Ice Storm rating, the larger by expected loss; the others are in the crosswalk above.

Where Ice Storm is rated high

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

Alabama: 2 of 67 counties rated high (3%) · $6M expected loss a yearAlaska: 0 of 30 counties rated high (0%) · $220K expected loss a yearArizona: 0 of 4 counties rated high (0%) · $371K expected loss a yearArkansas: 62 of 75 counties rated high (83%) · $129M expected loss a yearCalifornia: not rated for Ice StormColorado: 0 of 64 counties rated high (0%) · $3M expected loss a yearConnecticut: 5 of 9 counties rated high (56%) · $10M expected loss a yearDelaware: 1 of 3 counties rated high (33%) · $2M expected loss a yearDistrict of Columbia: 0 of 1 counties rated high (0%) · $222K expected loss a yearFlorida: 0 of 8 counties rated high (0%) · $246K expected loss a yearGeorgia: 10 of 159 counties rated high (6%) · $23M expected loss a yearHawaii: 0 of 3 counties rated high (0%) · $164K expected loss a yearIdaho: 1 of 44 counties rated high (2%) · $2M expected loss a yearIllinois: 4 of 102 counties rated high (4%) · $15M expected loss a yearIndiana: 2 of 92 counties rated high (2%) · $11M expected loss a yearIowa: 4 of 99 counties rated high (4%) · $12M expected loss a yearKansas: 31 of 105 counties rated high (30%) · $55M expected loss a yearKentucky: 26 of 120 counties rated high (22%) · $30M expected loss a yearLouisiana: 18 of 64 counties rated high (28%) · $33M expected loss a yearMaine: 15 of 16 counties rated high (94%) · $26M expected loss a yearMaryland: 0 of 24 counties rated high (0%) · $3M expected loss a yearMassachusetts: 7 of 14 counties rated high (50%) · $20M expected loss a yearMichigan: 10 of 83 counties rated high (12%) · $24M expected loss a yearMinnesota: 0 of 87 counties rated high (0%) · $8M expected loss a yearMississippi: 3 of 82 counties rated high (4%) · $9M expected loss a yearMissouri: 39 of 115 counties rated high (34%) · $57M expected loss a yearMontana: 1 of 56 counties rated high (2%) · $3M expected loss a yearNebraska: 8 of 93 counties rated high (9%) · $19M expected loss a yearNevada: 0 of 4 counties rated high (0%) · $567K expected loss a yearNew Hampshire: 6 of 10 counties rated high (60%) · $9M expected loss a yearNew Jersey: 11 of 21 counties rated high (52%) · $21M expected loss a yearNew Mexico: 2 of 33 counties rated high (6%) · $2M expected loss a yearNew York: 17 of 62 counties rated high (27%) · $28M expected loss a yearNorth Carolina: 35 of 100 counties rated high (35%) · $52M expected loss a yearNorth Dakota: 9 of 53 counties rated high (17%) · $21M expected loss a yearOhio: 22 of 88 counties rated high (25%) · $36M expected loss a yearOklahoma: 63 of 77 counties rated high (82%) · $102M expected loss a yearOregon: 8 of 36 counties rated high (22%) · $10M expected loss a yearPennsylvania: 6 of 67 counties rated high (9%) · $15M expected loss a yearRhode Island: 1 of 5 counties rated high (20%) · $1M expected loss a yearSouth Carolina: 29 of 46 counties rated high (63%) · $42M expected loss a yearSouth Dakota: 6 of 66 counties rated high (9%) · $20M expected loss a yearTennessee: 13 of 95 counties rated high (14%) · $19M expected loss a yearTexas: 43 of 254 counties rated high (17%) · $83M expected loss a yearUtah: 0 of 29 counties rated high (0%) · $581K expected loss a yearVermont: 0 of 14 counties rated high (0%) · $2M expected loss a yearVirginia: 2 of 133 counties rated high (2%) · $8M expected loss a yearWashington: 11 of 39 counties rated high (28%) · $18M expected loss a yearWest Virginia: 1 of 55 counties rated high (2%) · $3M expected loss a yearWisconsin: 1 of 72 counties rated high (1%) · $6M expected loss a yearWyoming: 1 of 23 counties rated high (4%) · $2M 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

282 federal declarations since 1964

Declarations FEMA filed as “Severe Ice Storm”, “Snowstorm”, “Winter Storm”, by year (2026 to date)

015301964: 1 declaration1968: 1 declaration1972: 1 declaration1976: 2 declarations1977: 11 declarations1978: 8 declarations1979: 2 declarations1984: 1 declaration1985: 1 declaration1987: 1 declaration1990: 1 declaration1991: 6 declarations1993: 18 declarations1994: 5 declarations1995: 1 declaration1996: 15 declarations1997: 2 declarations1998: 1 declaration1999: 8 declarations2000: 5 declarations2001: 12 declarations2002: 5 declarations2003: 15 declarations2004: 8 declarations2005: 17 declarations2006: 5 declarations2007: 12 declarations2008: 8 declarations2009: 9 declarations2010: 12 declarations2011: 5 declarations2013: 2 declarations2014: 10 declarations2015: 5 declarations2016: 5 declarations2017: 3 declarations2018: 3 declarations2020: 1 declaration2021: 12 declarations2022: 5 declarations2023: 9 declarations2024: 4 declarations2025: 3 declarations2026 (to date): 21 declarations2026: 21197019801990200020102020
OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, as of 2026-09-27. Counts distinct disasters; major, emergency and fire-management declarations.

In your plan

What a Winter Weather 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 Winter Weather.

  1. Location

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

    National data

    FEMA's National Risk Index rates Winter Weather 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 Winter Weather (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)

    National data

    Every FEMA declaration filed as Severe Ice Storm, Snowstorm or Winter Storm that included your county, back to 1953, alongside the events your own records and after-action reports describe.

  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 Winter Weather 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 Winter Weather

  1. 1

    We pull your county's record

    FEMA's National Risk Index rating and expected loss, your disaster declarations and NOAA's daily temperature record, gathered before we meet.

  2. 2

    We read the plans you already have

    Your hazard mitigation plan and EOP annexes, so you can see what they say about Winter Weather and where the profile falls short.

  3. 3

    You leave with a cited brief

    Likelihood, impact and readiness for Winter Weather on your own scale, with each figure tied to its source. It is ready for your planning team or council.

Also in Weather Hazards

Preparing for Winter Weather

Walk into your next plan update with Winter Weather already sourced.

Most plans assume severe weather is covered. We check whether yours explains why, using your county's record instead of a regional average. We reply within one business day.

Book a walkthrough

Takes about two minutes. A person reads each request.

Or start by marking your area on the map