Natural disaster risk in Cobb County, Georgia

Georgia · population 764,915 · FIPS 13067

Overall: relatively high risk

Cobb County has a composite risk score of 94.4 out of 100 — higher than 94% of US counties. It ranks 4 of 159 in Georgia (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are lightning, tornado, hail.

Drought now: No, but abnormally dry (D0)

No drought, but abnormally dry. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 100% of Cobb County is D0 Abnormally Dry and none of it is in drought (D1 to D4). Some of it has been abnormally dry or worse for at least 54 weeks in a row.

Drought in Cobb 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.
Relatively high 94.4
Expected annual loss
About $209.6 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards.
Relatively high 95.9
Social vulnerability
Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover.
Very low 11.4
Community resilience
Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover.
Relatively low 28.7

Risk by hazard

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

HazardRisk rating and score
Lightning Very high 97
Tornado Relatively high 98
Hail Relatively high 97
Cold wave Relatively high 96
Inland (riverine) flooding Relatively high 96
Ice storm Relatively high 93
Earthquake Relatively moderate 92
Heat wave Relatively moderate 88
Strong wind Relatively moderate 83
Winter weather Relatively moderate 75
Landslide Relatively low 76
Hurricane Relatively low 68
Wildfire Very low 51
Avalanche Not applicable
Coastal flooding Not applicable
Drought No rating
Tsunami Not applicable
Volcanic activity Not applicable

FEMA disaster declarations for Cobb County

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

Yes. Cobb County has been named in 3 FEMA declarations since 1 Jan 2024. The latest is EM-3657-GA (Hurricane Isaias), declared 9 Oct 2026.

DeclarationKindIncidentDeclaredIndividual assistance here
EM-3657-GA Emergency Hurricane Isaias 9 Oct 2026 No
EM-3642-GA Emergency Severe Winter Storm 24 Jan 2026 No
EM-3616-GA Emergency Hurricane Helene 26 Sep 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 Cobb County, Georgia?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in Cobb County as relatively high, with a score of 94.4 out of 100 (higher than 94% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.

What are the biggest natural hazards in Cobb County?

The hazards rated highest for Cobb County are lightning (very high), tornado (relatively high), hail (relatively high).

What is the flood risk in Cobb County?

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

Has Cobb County had a FEMA disaster declaration?

Yes. Cobb County has been named in 3 FEMA declarations since 1 Jan 2024. The latest is EM-3657-GA (Hurricane Isaias), declared 9 Oct 2026.

Is Cobb County in a drought?

No drought, but abnormally dry. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 100% of Cobb County is D0 Abnormally Dry and none of it is in drought (D1 to D4). Some of it has been abnormally dry or worse for at least 54 weeks in a row.

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