Natural disaster risk in Jones County, Iowa

Iowa · population 20,631 · FIPS 19105

Overall: very low risk

Jones County has a composite risk score of 32.7 out of 100 — higher than 32% of US counties. It ranks 57 of 99 in Iowa (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are drought, strong wind, hail.

Drought now: No: no drought or dryness

No. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, no part of Jones County is in drought or abnormally dry (none of D0 to D4). That has been so for 19 weeks in a row.

Drought in Jones County: the last 52 weeks · droughtmonitor.unl.edu

The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC.

Risk, loss, vulnerability and resilience

MeasureRating and score
Overall risk
Expected annual loss, adjusted for social vulnerability and community resilience.
Very low 32.7
Expected annual loss
About $16.1 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards.
Relatively low 53
Social vulnerability
Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover.
Very low 10.6
Community resilience
Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover.
Relatively high 78.9

Risk by hazard

FEMA's risk rating for each of 18 natural hazards in Jones County, highest first. "Not applicable" means the hazard is not modelled here.

HazardRisk rating and score
Drought Relatively moderate 76
Strong wind Relatively moderate 73
Hail Relatively low 72
Landslide Relatively low 71
Tornado Relatively low 50
Inland (riverine) flooding Relatively low 46
Cold wave Relatively low 35
Winter weather Relatively low 35
Ice storm Relatively low 31
Wildfire Very low 27
Heat wave Very low 24
Earthquake Very low 21
Lightning Very low 15
Hurricane Very low 9
Avalanche Not applicable
Coastal flooding Not applicable
Tsunami Not applicable
Volcanic activity Not applicable

FEMA disaster declarations for Jones County

Federal declarations that designated Jones County, since 1 Jan 2024 (the period this site keeps from OpenFEMA). Older declarations are in FEMA's own dataset.

Not since 1 Jan 2024: no FEMA disaster declaration in the records this site read names Jones County.

All FEMA declarations in Iowa, with estimated apply-by dates · Open FEMA deadlines

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s). Dataset: Disaster Declarations Summaries - v2.

How to read these ratings

  • Ratings run in five steps: very low, relatively low, relatively moderate, relatively high and very high. They compare a county with every other US county; they are not a measure of danger on their own.
  • Scores run from 0 to 100 and are national percentiles. The bar shows the score: a score of 80 means a higher value than 80% of US counties.
  • Overall risk combines the expected annual loss with social vulnerability and community resilience.
  • Expected annual loss is the average yearly loss to buildings, people and agriculture the model expects from all 18 hazards.
  • Social vulnerability describes how hard it may be for people to prepare for and recover from a disaster. Higher is worse.
  • Community resilience describes a community's ability to prepare, adapt and recover. Higher is better.
  • "Not applicable" means FEMA does not model that hazard there (for example, hurricanes far inland).

About this data

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, version 1.20, released December 2025, published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (US public domain). About the National Risk Index. The index is a model of relative risk built from historical hazard records, what is exposed and community factors. It is not a forecast, it does not describe any single property, and it is not insurance or financial advice. For decisions about a specific address, check FEMA's flood maps and your local emergency management office.

Questions

What is the natural disaster risk in Jones County, Iowa?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in Jones County as very low, with a score of 32.7 out of 100 (higher than 32% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.

What are the biggest natural hazards in Jones County?

The hazards rated highest for Jones County are drought (relatively moderate), strong wind (relatively moderate), hail (relatively low).

What is the flood risk in Jones County?

FEMA rates inland (river and rain) flooding risk in Jones County as relatively low. For a specific property, check the FEMA flood map and your local floodplain office.

Has Jones County had a FEMA disaster declaration?

Not since 1 Jan 2024: no FEMA disaster declaration in the records this site read names Jones County.

Is Jones County in a drought?

No. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, no part of Jones County is in drought or abnormally dry (none of D0 to D4). That has been so for 19 weeks in a row.

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