Mobile County Disaster Risk

Mobile County has a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively High, placing it in the 98th percentile nationally out of 3,144 counties. This composite score reflects the county's overall exposure to natural hazards including floods, wildfires, tornadoes, earthquakes, and hurricanes, weighted by expected annual loss and social vulnerability.

Mobile County is evaluated for five major natural hazard types: hurricane (99th percentile), flooding (96th percentile), tornado (95th percentile), wildfire (93th percentile), earthquake (85th percentile). The highest-risk hazard is hurricane at the 99th percentile nationally. These scores are derived from FEMA's National Risk Index, which analyzes expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience for each hazard type.

Mobile County's composite risk percentile is 98th, compared to the Alabama state average of 62th percentile. The state's overall risk rating is Relatively Low. This means Mobile County faces higher natural disaster risk than the typical county in Alabama.

Yes, Mobile County's hurricane risk is at the 99th percentile nationally. This places it in the top quartile for this hazard type. For flooding specifically, Mobile County is at the 96th percentile.

FEMA's National Risk Index (NRI) calculates risk scores for 18 natural hazard types across all U.S. counties and census tracts. The composite score combines Expected Annual Loss (estimated dollar losses from each hazard), Social Vulnerability (demographic factors affecting disaster impact), and Community Resilience (ability to recover). Percentile scores rank each county against all 3,144 U.S. counties, and risk ratings range from Very Low to Very High.

Mobile County's composite risk score of 98th percentile is above the Alabama state average of 62th percentile. This elevated risk is driven by hurricane exposure (99th percentile), along with flooding and tornado and wildfire and earthquake risk. Geographic location, terrain, climate patterns, and proximity to flood zones or fault lines all influence a county's risk profile.