Every federal disaster in Denton since 1953

Each square is a disaster or emergency declaration by the President or FEMA that covered Denton County. Declarations make federal aid available after hurricanes, floods, storms, fires and other events, so this is a record of the big ones.

Declarations: 35since 1953
Major disasters: 21the most serious kind
Since 2000: 18declarations
Most recent: 2024Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding

Severe storms and tornadoes (9)Hurricanes and tropical storms (8)Fires (6)Floods (5)Biological (COVID-19) (3)Other (2)Winter storms (2)

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Denton County's overall natural hazard risk relatively high, led by tornado, hail and ice storm. The history above shows what has actually happened; the risk index estimates what is likely.

All declarations

Declared	Event	Type	FEMA number
May 17, 2024	Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding	Major disaster	DR-4781
Feb 19, 2021	Severe Winter Storms	Major disaster	DR-4586
Feb 14, 2021	Severe Winter Storm	Emergency	EM-3554
Mar 25, 2020	COVID-19 Pandemic	Major disaster	DR-4485
Mar 13, 2020	COVID-19	Emergency	EM-3501
Mar 13, 2020	COVID-19	Emergency	EM-3458
May 29, 2015	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds and Flooding	Major disaster	DR-4223
Sep 10, 2008	Hurricane Ike	Emergency	EM-3294
Aug 29, 2008	Hurricane Gustav	Emergency	EM-3290
Mar 14, 2008	Wildfires	Emergency	EM-3284
Jun 29, 2007	Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding	Major disaster	DR-1709
May 1, 2007	Severe Storms and Tornadoes	Major disaster	DR-1697
Jun 27, 2006	North Trinity Fire	Fire management	FM-2651
Jan 11, 2006	Extreme Wildfire Threat	Major disaster	DR-1624
Sep 24, 2005	Hurricane Rita	Major disaster	DR-1606
Sep 21, 2005	Hurricane Rita	Emergency	EM-3261
Sep 2, 2005	Hurricane Katrina Evacuation	Emergency	EM-3216
Feb 1, 2003	Loss of the Space Shuttle Columbia	Emergency	EM-3171
Sep 1, 1999	Extreme Fire Hazards	Emergency	EM-3142
Aug 26, 1998	Tropical Storm Charley	Major disaster	DR-1239
Jun 23, 1998	Fire	Emergency	EM-3127
Feb 23, 1996	Extreme Fire Hazard	Emergency	EM-3117
Sep 10, 1993	Extreme Fire Hazard	Emergency	EM-3113
May 2, 1990	Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding	Major disaster	DR-863
May 19, 1989	Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding	Major disaster	DR-828
Nov 30, 1974	Severe Storms & Flooding	Major disaster	DR-454
Sep 24, 1963	Hurricane Cindy	Major disaster	DR-159
Sep 16, 1961	Hurricane Carla	Major disaster	DR-118
Jul 15, 1960	Heavy Rains, Hail, Floods & Tornadoes	Major disaster	DR-103
Jul 8, 1959	Floods	Major disaster	DR-93
Jun 6, 1958	Tornadoes, Rain, Hail & Floods	Major disaster	DR-85
Apr 29, 1957	Hurricane, Rain, Wind, Hail & Floods	Major disaster	DR-72
Jul 1, 1954	Flood	Major disaster	DR-18
Jun 19, 1953	Flood	Major disaster	DR-9
May 15, 1953	Tornado & Heavy Rainfall	Major disaster	DR-2

Frequently asked questions

How many federal disasters has Denton had?

Since 1953, the federal government has issued 35 disaster or emergency declarations covering Denton County, including 21 major disaster declarations. 18 of them came in 2000 or later.

What was the most recent federal disaster in Denton?

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding (Major disaster, declared May 17, 2024).

What kinds of disasters hit Denton most often?

By FEMA incident type: hurricane (8), severe storm (7), fire (6) and flood (5).

New to Denton? The city profile covers flood maps and emergency alerts, and the risk summary shows FEMA's hazard ratings.

Source: FEMA, OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), downloaded October 18, 2026. We list declarations that named Denton County, plus early statewide declarations from before FEMA designated individual counties. "Major disaster" declarations bring the widest federal aid; "emergency" declarations cover shorter-term help; "fire management" declarations help pay to fight large wildfires.