— “Major disaster” means any natural catastrophe (including any hurricane, tornado, storm, high water, winddriven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or drought), or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood, or explosion, in any part of the United States, which in the ...

Emergency - a serious, unexpected, and often dangerous situation requiring immediate action. Disaster - a sudden accident or a natural catastrophe that causes great damage or loss of life.

Simply put, a disaster declaration allows public officials to exercise emergency powers to preserve life, property, and public health following a disaster. [11] Some of these powers include: Ordering an evacuation of a disaster threatened or stricken area [12]; Control access to an area following a disaster [13];

FEMA must be able to verify the applicants occupancy and/or ownership. Applicants must be able to prove the disaster-damaged home was their primary residence. Pre-disaster homeowners must also prove ownership of their disaster-damaged home.

This dataset lists all official FEMA Disaster Declarations, beginning with the first disaster declaration in 1953 and features all three disaster declaration types: major disaster, emergency, and fire management assistance.

A Disaster Declaration is a formal statement by a jurisdiction that a disaster or emergency exceeds the response and/or recovery capabilities. Although a declaration is commonly addressed after a disaster, a declaration may be made if a disaster is found to be imminent.

Emergency Declarations supplement State and local efforts in providing emergency services, such as the protection of lives, property, public health, and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in any part of the United States.