Natural disaster risk in Atkinson County, Georgia

Georgia · population 8,264 · FIPS 13003

Overall: very low risk

Atkinson County has a composite risk score of 7.3 out of 100 — higher than 7% of US counties. It ranks 143 of 159 in Georgia (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are hurricane, drought, tornado.

Drought now: No: no drought or dryness

No. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, no part of Atkinson County is in drought or abnormally dry (none of D0 to D4). That has been so for 1 week so far.

Drought in Atkinson County: the last 52 weeks · droughtmonitor.unl.edu

The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC.

Risk, loss, vulnerability and resilience

MeasureRating and score
Overall risk
Expected annual loss, adjusted for social vulnerability and community resilience.
Very low 7.3
Expected annual loss
About $3.6 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards.
Very low 6.8
Social vulnerability
Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover.
Relatively moderate 47.3
Community resilience
Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover.
Very low 15.9

Risk by hazard

FEMA's risk rating for each of 18 natural hazards in Atkinson County, highest first. "Not applicable" means the hazard is not modelled here.

HazardRisk rating and score
Hurricane Relatively low 78
Drought Relatively low 56
Tornado Relatively low 28
Wildfire Very low 43
Earthquake Very low 35
Lightning Very low 22
Heat wave Very low 21
Cold wave Very low 15
Strong wind Very low 9
Inland (riverine) flooding Very low 8
Hail Very low 6
Winter weather Very low 3
Ice storm Very low 1
Landslide Very low 1
Avalanche Not applicable
Coastal flooding Not applicable
Tsunami Not applicable
Volcanic activity Not applicable

FEMA disaster declarations for Atkinson County

Federal declarations that designated Atkinson County, since 1 Jan 2024 (the period this site keeps from OpenFEMA). Older declarations are in FEMA's own dataset.

Yes. Atkinson County has been named in 4 FEMA declarations since 1 Jan 2024. The latest is DR-4830-GA (Hurricane Helene), declared 30 Sep 2024.

DeclarationKindIncidentDeclaredIndividual assistance here
DR-4830-GA Major disaster Hurricane Helene 30 Sep 2024 Yes
EM-3616-GA Emergency Hurricane Helene 26 Sep 2024 No
DR-4821-GA Major disaster Tropical Storm Debby 24 Sep 2024 No
EM-3607-GA Emergency Hurricane Debby 5 Aug 2024 No

All FEMA declarations in Georgia, with estimated apply-by dates · Open FEMA deadlines

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s). Dataset: Disaster Declarations Summaries - v2.

How to read these ratings

  • Ratings run in five steps: very low, relatively low, relatively moderate, relatively high and very high. They compare a county with every other US county; they are not a measure of danger on their own.
  • Scores run from 0 to 100 and are national percentiles. The bar shows the score: a score of 80 means a higher value than 80% of US counties.
  • Overall risk combines the expected annual loss with social vulnerability and community resilience.
  • Expected annual loss is the average yearly loss to buildings, people and agriculture the model expects from all 18 hazards.
  • Social vulnerability describes how hard it may be for people to prepare for and recover from a disaster. Higher is worse.
  • Community resilience describes a community's ability to prepare, adapt and recover. Higher is better.
  • "Not applicable" means FEMA does not model that hazard there (for example, hurricanes far inland).

About this data

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, version 1.20, released December 2025, published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (US public domain). About the National Risk Index. The index is a model of relative risk built from historical hazard records, what is exposed and community factors. It is not a forecast, it does not describe any single property, and it is not insurance or financial advice. For decisions about a specific address, check FEMA's flood maps and your local emergency management office.

Questions

What is the natural disaster risk in Atkinson County, Georgia?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in Atkinson County as very low, with a score of 7.3 out of 100 (higher than 7% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.

What are the biggest natural hazards in Atkinson County?

The hazards rated highest for Atkinson County are hurricane (relatively low), drought (relatively low), tornado (relatively low).

What is the flood risk in Atkinson County?

FEMA rates inland (river and rain) flooding risk in Atkinson County as very low. For a specific property, check the FEMA flood map and your local floodplain office.

Has Atkinson County had a FEMA disaster declaration?

Yes. Atkinson County has been named in 4 FEMA declarations since 1 Jan 2024. The latest is DR-4830-GA (Hurricane Helene), declared 30 Sep 2024.

Is Atkinson County in a drought?

No. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, no part of Atkinson County is in drought or abnormally dry (none of D0 to D4). That has been so for 1 week so far.

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