Natural disaster risk in Ware County, Georgia

Georgia · population 36,208 · FIPS 13299

Overall: relatively low risk

Ware County has a composite risk score of 49.4 out of 100 — higher than 49% of US counties. It ranks 61 of 159 in Georgia (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are hurricane, lightning, wildfire.

Drought now: No, but abnormally dry (D0)

No drought, but abnormally dry. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 25.68% of Ware 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 Ware 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 low 49.4
Expected annual loss
About $12.1 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards.
Very low 42.5
Social vulnerability
Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover.
Relatively high 78.1
Community resilience
Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover.
Very high 81.2

Risk by hazard

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

HazardRisk rating and score
Hurricane Relatively moderate 87
Lightning Relatively moderate 64
Wildfire Relatively low 73
Earthquake Relatively low 66
Tornado Relatively low 62
Heat wave Relatively low 60
Drought Relatively low 48
Inland (riverine) flooding Relatively low 46
Strong wind Relatively low 31
Cold wave Very low 19
Landslide Very low 19
Winter weather Very low 19
Hail Very low 11
Ice storm Very low 6
Avalanche Not applicable
Coastal flooding Not applicable
Tsunami Not applicable
Volcanic activity Not applicable

FEMA disaster declarations for Ware County

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

Yes. Ware 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 Ware County, Georgia?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in Ware County as relatively low, with a score of 49.4 out of 100 (higher than 49% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.

What are the biggest natural hazards in Ware County?

The hazards rated highest for Ware County are hurricane (relatively moderate), lightning (relatively moderate), wildfire (relatively low).

What is the flood risk in Ware County?

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

Has Ware County had a FEMA disaster declaration?

Yes. Ware 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 Ware County in a drought?

No drought, but abnormally dry. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 25.68% of Ware 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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