States › Montana › Petroleum County
Petroleum County, Montana
Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.
NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 1 Oct 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.
The NCEI record lists 389 events for Petroleum County, Montana, between 1950 and 2026; damaging wind account for the largest share.
That is 23.5 events per 100 square miles, in line with the Montana figure of 24.9, and 7,495.2 per 10,000 residents against 328.5 statewide.
32 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 1 death and 1 injury to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $1.1M and crop damage at $5K.
FEMA has designated the county in 12 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Severe Winter Storm And Flooding (major disaster, 18 Jul 2024).
OpenFEMA lists no National Flood Insurance Program claims in the county.
FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Very Low" and its expected annual loss as "Very Low" ($1.6M a year across 18 hazards).
Compared with Montana and the United States
| Measure | Petroleum County | Montana | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded events since 1950 | 389 | 36,277 | 1,977,440 |
| Events per 100 square miles | 23.5 | 24.9 | 56.0 |
| Events per 10,000 residents | 7,495.2 | 328.5 | 59.6 |
| Events in the last 12 months | 32 | 1,522 | 62,008 |
| Deaths recorded by NCEI | 1 | 166 | 26,435 |
| Property damage (NCEI estimates) | $1.1M | $369M | $575B |
| NFIP claims per 1,000 residents | 0.0 | 2.0 | 8.1 |
| Average paid NFIP claim | — | $12K | $43K |
| Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years | 0.0 | 9.8 | 16.1 |
County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.
Events by decade
Trend: 236 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 131 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.
Events by type
Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.
Largest recorded events
| Date | Event type | Group | Magnitude | Property damage | Crop damage | Deaths | Injuries | Geography |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Sep 1998 | Lightning | Lightning | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | County |
| 23 Aug 2014 | Flood | Flood | — | $515K | — | — | — | County |
| 9 Jun 2016 | Hail | Hail | 2.00 in | $500K | — | — | — | County |
Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.
Federal disaster declarations
| Declared | Number | Type | Incident | Title | Programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Jul 2024 | DR-4801 | Major disaster | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm And Flooding | Public assistance |
| 11 Oct 2023 | DR-4745 | Major disaster | Flood | Flooding | Public assistance |
| 31 Mar 2020 | DR-4508 | Major disaster | Biological | Covid-19 Pandemic | Individual assistance, Public assistance |
| 13 Mar 2020 | EM-3476 | Emergency | Biological | Covid-19 | Public assistance |
| 30 Aug 2018 | DR-4388 | Major disaster | Flood | Flooding | Public assistance |
| 27 Jul 2017 | FM-5194 | Fire management assistance | Fire | Lodgepole Fire Complex | Public assistance |
| 9 Oct 2014 | DR-4198 | Major disaster | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding | Public assistance |
| 10 Jul 2013 | DR-4127 | Major disaster | Flood | Flooding | Public assistance |
| 17 Jun 2011 | DR-1996 | Major disaster | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding | Individual assistance, Public assistance |
| 13 Sep 2005 | EM-3253 | Emergency | Hurricane | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Public assistance |
| 30 Aug 2000 | DR-1340 | Major disaster | Fire | Wildfires | Individual assistance |
| 15 Mar 1986 | DR-761 | Major disaster | Flood | Heavy Rains, Landslides & Flooding | Public assistance |
Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.
Flood insurance claims
OpenFEMA lists no NFIP claims with this county's code. FEMA counts 1 residential flood policies in force.
National Risk Index
| Hazard (NRI) | Risk rating | Expected annual loss |
|---|---|---|
| Lightning | $538,294 | |
| Cold wave | $505,021 | |
| Inland flooding | $397,938 | |
| Wildfire | $141,608 | |
| Hail | $31,398 | |
| Winter weather | $10,505 | |
| Heat wave | $6,792 | |
| Strong wind | $6,039 | |
| Tornado | $5,022 | |
| Drought | $2,407 | |
| Earthquake | $1,793 | |
| Ice storm | $353 | |
| Landslide | $55 |
FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.
Hurricane and tropical storm passes
No HURDAT2 track at tropical-storm strength passes within 100 miles of the county's centre point (through the 2025 season).
Questions and answers
How often does it hail in Petroleum County, MT?
NCEI records 115 hail events in Petroleum County since 1950, in 29 different years; that is about 1.5 recorded events a year. 23 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.
Has Petroleum County had a tornado?
Yes. NCEI records 8 tornadoes in Petroleum County since 1950, 1 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 0.
When was the last federal disaster declaration for Petroleum County?
18 Jul 2024: Severe Winter Storm And Flooding, a major disaster declaration for severe storm. The county appears in 12 declarations since 1953.
How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Petroleum County, and how much was paid?
OpenFEMA lists no NFIP claims in the county.
Is Petroleum County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?
FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Very Low" for overall risk, "Very Low" for expected annual loss, "Relatively Low" for social vulnerability and "Very Low" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.
How does Petroleum County compare with the rest of Montana?
23.5 recorded events per 100 square miles against 24.9 statewide, and 0.0 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 2.0. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.
Provenance
Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 1 Oct 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 1 Oct 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.