Milwaukee County, Wisconsin

Milwaukee County, Wisconsin has a relatively high overall risk from natural hazards in FEMA's National Risk Index. Its risk score is higher than 98% of US counties. It ranks 1st of 72 counties in Wisconsin. The costliest hazards here are cold waves, inland flooding and tornadoes. FEMA estimates about $342 million a year in expected losses, or roughly $364 per resident. Since 1969 it has been included in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations for natural events (16 major disasters). The most recent was in June 2026 (severe storms, tornadoes and flooding). Fewer than 1 in 100 homes here carry federal flood insurance (1,063 policies). Since 1978, federal flood insurance has paid about $29 million on 2,435 claims here, including $12 million for floods in 2025.

FEMA National Risk Index December 2025; OpenFEMA declarations to Nov 6, 2026; NFIP records. Updated November 6, 2026.

Scores are percentiles: a score of 90 means higher risk than about 90% of US counties for that hazard. Hazards FEMA does not rate here are left out. Social vulnerability is relatively high and community resilience is very high in FEMA's measures.

The National Weather Service has logged 598 storm reports in Milwaukee County since 1956, with 5 deaths and 187 injuries and about $334 million in reported damage. The strongest on record here was an F2 tornado on September 26, 1959.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, county-based reports through Jul 27, 2026. Tornado records start in 1950, hail and wind in 1955, and floods and other storm types in 1996, so older decades undercount. Damage is in dollars of the year it happened and is often an estimate. Winter storms, heat and hurricanes are logged by forecast zone, not county, so they are not counted here.

National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) records only; private flood policies are not included. Home counts as of Aug 3, 2026. Since 2021 NFIP prices each home separately under Risk Rating 2.0, so your price depends on the building, not the county. Ask an agent for a quote.

Older homes and mobile homes usually suffer more damage in storms, floods and earthquakes, and can cost more to insure. If you are buying, ask about roof age, foundation bolting and any retrofits. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 5-year estimates; 426,715 housing units.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, and NFIP policy and claims data. Hazard Compass is independent and not affiliated with FEMA. These figures describe the whole county, not a single property, and are not insurance or safety advice. Report a problem.