New Jersey Natural Disaster Risk by County
Of New Jersey's 21 counties, 0 have a Very High natural-hazard risk rating in FEMA's National Risk Index (v1.20, December 2025); the highest is Bergen County (score 97.8 of 100), and expected losses across the state total $3.2 billion a year.
OpenFEMA lists 57 federal disaster, emergency and fire management declarations for New Jersey since 1955 (not counting COVID-19); the latest is FM-5581-NJ, Jones Road Fire, declared 24 April 2025.
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Most exposed counties, hazard by hazard
Top 10 by FEMA hazard risk scoreHurricane 21 rated
| # | County | Rating | Loss a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atlantic County | Relatively High | $26 million |
| 2 | Mercer County | Relatively High | $18 million |
| 3 | Ocean County | Relatively High | $13 million |
| 4 | Monmouth County | Relatively Moderate | $17 million |
| 5 | Cape May County | Relatively Moderate | $14 million |
| 6 | Bergen County | Relatively Moderate | $14 million |
| 7 | Middlesex County | Relatively Moderate | $12 million |
| 8 | Cumberland County | Relatively Moderate | $10 million |
| 9 | Essex County | Relatively Moderate | $7.7 million |
| 10 | Hudson County | Relatively Moderate | $7.4 million |
Tornado 21 rated
| # | County | Rating | Loss a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Essex County | Relatively High | $8.5 million |
| 2 | Middlesex County | Relatively High | $10 million |
| 3 | Bergen County | Relatively High | $9.0 million |
| 4 | Hudson County | Relatively High | $5.3 million |
| 5 | Passaic County | Relatively Moderate | $5.0 million |
| 6 | Union County | Relatively Moderate | $5.1 million |
| 7 | Camden County | Relatively Moderate | $4.7 million |
| 8 | Mercer County | Relatively Moderate | $4.1 million |
| 9 | Morris County | Relatively Moderate | $6.4 million |
| 10 | Burlington County | Relatively Moderate | $4.5 million |
Inland flooding 21 rated
| # | County | Rating | Loss a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middlesex County | Relatively High | $197 million |
| 2 | Bergen County | Relatively High | $217 million |
| 3 | Essex County | Relatively High | $149 million |
| 4 | Hudson County | Relatively High | $128 million |
| 5 | Passaic County | Relatively High | $111 million |
| 6 | Union County | Relatively High | $117 million |
| 7 | Mercer County | Relatively High | $114 million |
| 8 | Ocean County | Relatively High | $100 million |
| 9 | Burlington County | Relatively High | $122 million |
| 10 | Morris County | Relatively High | $158 million |
Coastal flooding 17 rated
| # | County | Rating | Loss a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bergen County | Very High | $34 million |
| 2 | Cape May County | Very High | $31 million |
| 3 | Ocean County | Very High | $19 million |
| 4 | Atlantic County | Very High | $14 million |
| 5 | Salem County | Very High | $14 million |
| 6 | Hudson County | Very High | $8.3 million |
| 7 | Monmouth County | Relatively High | $7.6 million |
| 8 | Cumberland County | Relatively High | $4.5 million |
| 9 | Gloucester County | Relatively High | $4.3 million |
| 10 | Middlesex County | Relatively High | $3.0 million |
Wildfire 21 rated
| # | County | Rating | Loss a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ocean County | Relatively Moderate | $3.6 million |
| 2 | Atlantic County | Relatively Moderate | $2.8 million |
| 3 | Burlington County | Relatively Moderate | $2.4 million |
| 4 | Monmouth County | Relatively Low | $1.4 million |
| 5 | Cape May County | Relatively Low | $843,611 |
| 6 | Camden County | Relatively Low | $711,004 |
| 7 | Cumberland County | Relatively Low | $673,064 |
| 8 | Gloucester County | Relatively Low | $497,713 |
| 9 | Middlesex County | Relatively Low | $376,175 |
| 10 | Mercer County | Relatively Low | $215,926 |
Earthquake 21 rated
| # | County | Rating | Loss a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middlesex County | Relatively Moderate | $20 million |
| 2 | Bergen County | Relatively Moderate | $20 million |
| 3 | Essex County | Relatively Moderate | $12 million |
| 4 | Hudson County | Relatively Moderate | $11 million |
| 5 | Union County | Relatively Moderate | $13 million |
| 6 | Monmouth County | Relatively Moderate | $14 million |
| 7 | Mercer County | Relatively Moderate | $11 million |
| 8 | Camden County | Relatively Moderate | $9.8 million |
| 9 | Passaic County | Relatively Moderate | $7.6 million |
| 10 | Ocean County | Relatively Moderate | $7.2 million |
Every New Jersey county, highest overall risk first
21| # | County | Overall risk | Score | Loss a year | Top hazard | Declarations | Tornadoes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bergen County | Relatively High | 97.8 | $322 million | Coastal flooding | 30 | 9 |
| 2 | Middlesex County | Relatively High | 97.8 | $282 million | Strong wind | 28 | 8 |
| 3 | Essex County | Relatively High | 97.7 | $214 million | Heat wave | 31 | 3 |
| 4 | Hudson County | Relatively High | 97.2 | $189 million | Heat wave | 22 | 1 |
| 5 | Monmouth County | Relatively High | 96.3 | $282 million | Strong wind | 26 | 15 |
| 6 | Ocean County | Relatively High | 96.2 | $204 million | Strong wind | 31 | 20 |
| 7 | Passaic County | Relatively High | 95.8 | $149 million | Strong wind | 28 | 4 |
| 8 | Union County | Relatively High | 95.5 | $163 million | Strong wind | 28 | 14 |
| 9 | Mercer County | Relatively High | 95.4 | $176 million | Strong wind | 26 | 13 |
| 10 | Burlington County | Relatively Moderate | 93.6 | $176 million | Strong wind | 29 | 24 |
| 11 | Camden County | Relatively Moderate | 93.2 | $122 million | Winter weather | 23 | 9 |
| 12 | Atlantic County | Relatively Moderate | 93.0 | $123 million | Strong wind | 34 | 10 |
| 13 | Morris County | Relatively Moderate | 92.9 | $208 million | Strong wind | 31 | 9 |
| 14 | Cape May County | Relatively Moderate | 91.0 | $100 million | Coastal flooding | 32 | 11 |
| 15 | Somerset County | Relatively Moderate | 90.9 | $161 million | Inland flooding | 28 | 5 |
| 16 | Gloucester County | Relatively Moderate | 86.6 | $77 million | Strong wind | 26 | 15 |
| 17 | Cumberland County | Relatively Moderate | 82.6 | $44 million | Winter weather | 29 | 10 |
| 18 | Warren County | Relatively Low | 80.8 | $57 million | Strong wind | 25 | 6 |
| 19 | Hunterdon County | Relatively Low | 78.7 | $69 million | Strong wind | 24 | 10 |
| 20 | Sussex County | Relatively Low | 77.4 | $59 million | Strong wind | 26 | 4 |
| 21 | Salem County | Relatively Low | 76.5 | $40 million | Coastal flooding | 24 | 4 |
Score: FEMA's national percentile (higher = more risk). Declarations: federal declarations that named the county since 1953, not counting COVID-19. Tornadoes: NOAA SPC tornadoes that touched the county, 1950–2025.
Latest federal declarations in New Jersey
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What this page shows, and what it misses
FEMA's National Risk Index compares every US county with every other for 18 natural hazards, combining expected losses with social vulnerability and community resilience. It is a planning-level estimate for nationwide comparison, not a flood-zone map and not the risk to any one property — for flood zones use FEMA's Flood Map Service Center ↗. Federal declarations exclude state declarations and SBA or USDA designations.
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), National Risk Index Dataset: National Risk Index Counties - v1.20.0 (December 2025). Retrieved from https://services.arcgis.com/XG15cJAlne2vxtgt/ArcGIS/rest/services/National_Risk_Index_Counties/FeatureServer/0/query on November 2, 2026, 1:20 PM EST. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets 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).
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), OpenFEMA Dataset: Disaster Declarations Summaries - v2, retrieved from https://www.fema.gov/api/open/v2/DisasterDeclarationsSummaries on November 2, 2026, 1:21 PM EST. 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).
Tornado records: NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center, Severe Weather Database, tornadoes 1950–2025 (https://www.spc.noaa.gov/wcm/data/1950-2025_actual_tornadoes.csv, downloaded 2 November 2026). Public domain; not endorsed by NOAA. Compiled by Global Incident Tracker.
Questions about New Jersey
Which county in New Jersey has the highest natural disaster risk?
Of New Jersey's 21 counties, 0 have a Very High natural-hazard risk rating in FEMA's National Risk Index (v1.20, December 2025); the highest is Bergen County (score 97.8 of 100), and expected losses across the state total $3.2 billion a year.
Which New Jersey counties are most at risk from tornadoes?
By FEMA's National Risk Index tornado risk score: Essex County, Middlesex County, Bergen County. These are planning-level estimates for whole counties, not maps of individual properties.
Which New Jersey counties are most at risk from hurricanes?
By FEMA's National Risk Index hurricane risk score: Atlantic County, Mercer County, Ocean County. These are planning-level estimates for whole counties, not maps of individual properties.
How many FEMA disaster declarations has New Jersey had?
OpenFEMA lists 57 federal disaster, emergency and fire management declarations for New Jersey since 1955 (not counting COVID-19); the latest is FM-5581-NJ, Jones Road Fire, declared 24 April 2025.