Butler, IA
Butler County in Iowa has 12 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 #699 of 3,277 U.S. counties, with 9 NFIP flood insurance claims totaling $440,429 in payouts. Flood risk is relatively low compared to the national average.
FEMA Disaster Declarations in Butler County
The 12 most recent federally declared disasters affecting Butler County, IA (1965–2019). Total declarations on record: 12.
| Declared | Incident Type | Title | FEMA Disaster # |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 23, 2019 | Flood | Severe Storms and Flooding | DR-4421 |
| Oct 31, 2016 | Flood | Severe Storms and Flooding | DR-4289 |
| 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 |
| Apr 26, 1993 | Flood | Severe Storms & Flooding | DR-986 |
| Jul 12, 1991 | Flood | Severe Storms & Flooding | DR-911 |
| Jun 24, 1974 | Flood | Severe Storms & Flooding | DR-443 |
| Aug 14, 1969 | Flood | Heavy Rains & Flooding | DR-269 |
| Aug 4, 1968 | Flood | Heavy Rains & Flooding | DR-248 |
| Apr 22, 1965 | Flood | Flooding | DR-193 |
Score Breakdown
The composite score of 14 is calculated from four weighted factors. See our methodology for details.
Other Counties in Iowa
| County | Grade | Score | Claims | Disasters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Des Moines | A | 14 | 25 | 14 |
| Buchanan | A | 14 | 6 | 12 |
| Louisa | A | 14 | 1 | 12 |
| Pottawattamie | A | 14 | 20 | 8 |
| Linn | A | 14 | 29 | 12 |
| Allamakee | A | 15 | 0 | 13 |
More Counties in Iowa
Frequently Asked Questions
How many FEMA disaster declarations does Butler County, IA have?
Butler County, IA has 12 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 and Flooding (declared Oct 31, 2016, DR-4289); 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). Counts include flood, severe storm, hurricane, and coastal storm declarations from the OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries dataset.
What is the flood risk grade for Butler County, IA?
Butler County is graded A (composite score 14/100, low risk). It ranks #699 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 Butler County?
9 NFIP flood insurance claims have been filed in Butler County, IA, totaling $440,429 in payouts. The average claim is $48,937. Source: FEMA FimaNfipClaims v2 dataset.
Has Butler County, IA had any recent flood disasters?
Yes. The most recent FEMA declaration affecting Butler County was Severe Storms and Flooding on Mar 23, 2019 (DR-4421). The county has 12 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.
Every number on this page links back to FEMA OpenFEMA datasets including the National Flood Hazard Layer and NFIP claims; the methodology page describes the inputs, refresh cadence, and known limitations of the underlying data product.
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.