Buena Vista, IA
Buena Vista County in Iowa has 8 FEMA disaster declarations on record covering 1965–2019, most recently Severe Storms and Flooding on Mar 23, 2019 (DR-4421). Its flood risk grade is A (Low risk), ranking #1078 of 3,277 U.S. counties, with 0 NFIP flood insurance claims totaling $0 in payouts. Flood risk is relatively low compared to the national average.
FEMA Disaster Declarations in Buena Vista County
The 8 most recent federally declared disasters affecting Buena Vista County, IA (1965–2019). Total declarations on record: 8.
| Declared | Incident Type | Title | FEMA Disaster # |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 23, 2019 | Flood | Severe Storms and Flooding | DR-4421 |
| Jul 24, 2014 | Flood | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | DR-4184 |
| Sep 10, 2005 | Hurricane | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | DR-3239 |
| Jul 2, 1998 | Flood | Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding | DR-1230 |
| Jul 9, 1993 | Flood | Severe Storms & Flooding | DR-996 |
| Aug 14, 1969 | Flood | Heavy Rains & Flooding | DR-269 |
| Apr 25, 1969 | Flood | Flooding | DR-259 |
| Apr 22, 1965 | Flood | Flooding | DR-193 |
Score Breakdown
The composite score of 12 is calculated from four weighted factors. See our methodology for details.
Other Counties in Iowa
More Counties in Iowa
Frequently Asked Questions
How many FEMA disaster declarations does Buena Vista County, IA have?
Buena Vista County, IA has 8 federal disaster declarations on FEMA record (1965–2019). The 5 most recent are: Severe Storms and Flooding (declared Mar 23, 2019, DR-4421); Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding (declared Jul 24, 2014, DR-4184); Hurricane Katrina Evacuation (declared Sep 10, 2005, DR-3239); Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding (declared Jul 2, 1998, DR-1230); Severe Storms & Flooding (declared Jul 9, 1993, DR-996). Counts include flood, severe storm, hurricane, and coastal storm declarations from the OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries dataset.
What is the flood risk grade for Buena Vista County, IA?
Buena Vista County is graded A (composite score 12/100, low risk). It ranks #1078 of 3,277 U.S. counties for flood risk in our scoring model. The grade combines NFIP claims density (40%), disaster frequency (25%), claim severity (20%), and year-over-year trend (15%).
How many NFIP flood insurance claims have been filed in Buena Vista County?
0 NFIP flood insurance claims have been filed in Buena Vista County, IA, totaling $0 in payouts. The average claim is $0. Source: FEMA FimaNfipClaims v2 dataset.
Has Buena Vista County, IA had any recent flood disasters?
Yes. The most recent FEMA declaration affecting Buena Vista County was Severe Storms and Flooding on Mar 23, 2019 (DR-4421). The county has 8 declared disasters in the OpenFEMA record covering 1965–2019.
this entity is one of the data points covered by this site’s U.S. flood risk, NFIP claims, and disaster declarations dataset. The detail above comes directly from FEMA OpenFEMA datasets including the National Flood Hazard Layer and NFIP claims; the context that follows situates the headline numbers against the broader distribution across U.S. ZIPs, counties, and states.
The methodology behind every numeric value on this page is publicly documented on the FEMA OpenFEMA datasets including the National Flood Hazard Layer and NFIP claims portal and described in detail on this site’s methodology page. Refresh cadence varies by underlying series; the page surfaces the as-of date for each number so readers can trace any figure back to the source release.
For readers using this page as a decision input, the related-entity pages elsewhere on the site provide the comparison set. The most useful comparison for this entity is typically a peer within U.S. ZIPs, counties, and states with similar size, similar exposure, or similar geography — not the national-level summary alone.
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA datasets, 2026.