Alaska cold wave risk

30 counties scored 0 rated Very High

Kusilvak Census Area has the highest cold wave risk in Alaska, scoring 97.8 out of 100 — rated "Relatively High" by FEMA's National Risk Index.

#	County	NRI score	Rating
1	Kusilvak Census Area	97.8	Relatively High
2	Northwest Arctic Borough	97.3	Relatively High
3	Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area	97.3	Relatively High
4	Fairbanks North Star Borough	96.5	Relatively High
5	Bethel Census Area	94.9	Relatively High
6	Dillingham Census Area	93.2	Relatively High
7	Nome Census Area	92.4	Relatively High
8	North Slope Borough	84.8	Relatively Moderate
9	Southeast Fairbanks Census Area	80.5	Relatively Moderate
10	Denali Borough	64.6	Relatively Low
11	Matanuska-Susitna Borough	61.4	Relatively Low
12	Chugach Census Area	45.8	Relatively Low
13	Bristol Bay Borough	34.4	Relatively Low
14	Lake and Peninsula Borough	34.2	Relatively Low
15	Copper River Census Area	29.4	Relatively Low
16	Skagway Municipality	29.2	Relatively Low
17	Anchorage Municipality	27.9	Relatively Low
18	Kenai Peninsula Borough	14.2	Very Low
19	Juneau City and Borough	13.6	Very Low
20	Haines Borough	10.7	Very Low
21	Hoonah-Angoon Census Area	4.6	Very Low
22	Petersburg Borough	4	Very Low
23	Wrangell City and Borough	3.8	Very Low
24	Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area	3.5	Very Low
25	Aleutians West Census Area	3.1	Very Low
26	Sitka City and Borough	3	Very Low
27	Yakutat City and Borough	2.8	Very Low
28	Aleutians East Borough	0	No Rating
29	Ketchikan Gateway Borough	0	No Rating
30	Kodiak Island Borough	0	No Rating

Source: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0, December 2025. Scores are 0–100 percentile rankings among all US counties. See the methodology page for definitions. Download the full CSV for all counties.

Cold Wave risk nationally:

Top 50 US counties

Other hazard risks in Alaska:

Wildfire Inland Flooding Coastal Flooding Earthquake Heat Wave Tornado Hurricane Hail Strong Wind Winter Weather Ice Storm Lightning Drought Landslide Avalanche Tsunami Volcanic Activity

Frequently asked questions

What is the highest cold wave risk county in Alaska?

Kusilvak Census Area, AK has the highest cold wave risk in Alaska, with a FEMA National Risk Index score of 97.8 out of 100 (rated "Relatively High").

What causes cold wave risk in Alaska?

Cold wave risk captures expected losses from extended periods of extreme cold, including wind chill. The northern Plains, Great Lakes, and interior New England see the most severe and frequent cold events. Cold extremes cause significant excess mortality, especially among unhoused populations, the elderly, and those with inadequate heating or insulation. Cold and wind chill events are reported at forecast-zone level in NOAA Storm Events and are not included in county-level counts.