Carbon County Disaster Risk

Carbon County has a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low, placing it in the 59th 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.

Carbon County is evaluated for five major natural hazard types: hurricane (73th percentile), flooding (68th percentile), earthquake (47th percentile), wildfire (41th percentile), tornado (38th percentile). The highest-risk hazard is hurricane at the 73th 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.

Carbon County's composite risk percentile is 59th, compared to the Pennsylvania state average of 67th percentile. The state's overall risk rating is Relatively Low. This means Carbon County faces lower natural disaster risk than the typical county in Pennsylvania.

Yes, Carbon County's hurricane risk is at the 73th percentile nationally. This is above the national median. For flooding specifically, Carbon County is at the 68th 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.

Carbon County's composite risk score of 59th percentile is below the Pennsylvania state average of 67th percentile, indicating relatively lower exposure to natural hazards. However, no county is completely risk-free. The primary hazard type is hurricane at the 73th percentile. Residents should still maintain emergency preparedness plans and appropriate insurance coverage.