Natural disaster risk in Mississippi, by county

All 82 counties in Mississippi, ranked by FEMA's National Risk Index composite risk score, with each one's highest-rated hazard. Other states

At a glance

0
Very high risk
1
Relatively high risk
11
Relatively moderate risk
39
Relatively low risk
31
Very low risk

Highest overall risk: Harrison County (relatively high, score 95.6). Lowest: Issaquena County (very low, score 8.0).

Top hazards in Mississippi

HazardCounties rated relatively high or very highAverage score
Lightning15 of 8259.6
Tornado11 of 8271.3
Strong wind10 of 8256.6
Cold wave9 of 8257.0
Hurricane4 of 8271.6

All counties, highest risk first

#CountyOverall riskHighest-rated hazard
1 Harrison County Relatively high 95.6 Hurricane (very high)
2 Hinds County Relatively moderate 94.3 Hail (very high)
3 Jackson County Relatively moderate 92.3 Hurricane (relatively high)
4 DeSoto County Relatively moderate 89 Tornado (relatively high)
5 Lauderdale County Relatively moderate 87 Cold wave (relatively high)
6 Warren County Relatively moderate 86.3 Drought (very high)
7 Pearl River County Relatively moderate 86.1 Hurricane (relatively high)
8 Rankin County Relatively moderate 85 Hail (relatively high)
9 Washington County Relatively moderate 83 Tornado (relatively high)
10 Hancock County Relatively moderate 82.7 Hurricane (relatively high)
11 Madison County Relatively moderate 82.1 Tornado (relatively high)
12 Lee County Relatively moderate 81.3 Cold wave (relatively high)
13 Lowndes County Relatively low 80.9 Tornado (relatively high)
14 Jones County Relatively low 80.2 Tornado (relatively high)
15 Forrest County Relatively low 78.1 Tornado (relatively high)
16 Bolivar County Relatively low 76.8 Earthquake (relatively moderate)
17 Leflore County Relatively low 73.5 Drought (relatively moderate)
18 Marshall County Relatively low 71.2 Earthquake (relatively moderate)
19 Yazoo County Relatively low 71.2 Lightning (relatively high)
20 Pike County Relatively low 70.4 Lightning (relatively high)
21 Sunflower County Relatively low 69.6 Cold wave (relatively high)
22 Panola County Relatively low 69.2 Strong wind (relatively high)
23 Monroe County Relatively low 68.5 Cold wave (relatively high)
24 Alcorn County Relatively low 65 Tornado (relatively moderate)
25 Lamar County Relatively low 65 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
26 Lafayette County Relatively low 64.4 Cold wave (relatively moderate)
27 Oktibbeha County Relatively low 62.8 Tornado (relatively moderate)
28 Coahoma County Relatively low 62.5 Earthquake (relatively moderate)
29 Copiah County Relatively low 61.3 Landslide (relatively high)
30 Marion County Relatively low 60 Hail (relatively moderate)
31 Neshoba County Relatively low 58.3 Tornado (relatively moderate)
32 George County Relatively low 58 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
33 Adams County Relatively low 57.3 Heat wave (relatively moderate)
34 Scott County Relatively low 55.9 Hail (relatively moderate)
35 Leake County Relatively low 55.7 Strong wind (relatively high)
36 Wayne County Relatively low 55.7 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
37 Grenada County Relatively low 55.4 Tornado (relatively moderate)
38 Newton County Relatively low 52.4 Tornado (relatively moderate)
39 Stone County Relatively low 52 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
40 Prentiss County Relatively low 51.5 Cold wave (relatively moderate)
41 Simpson County Relatively low 51 Hail (relatively moderate)
42 Covington County Relatively low 50.8 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
43 Pontotoc County Relatively low 50.1 Tornado (relatively moderate)
44 Holmes County Relatively low 49.8 Drought (relatively moderate)
45 Itawamba County Relatively low 49.6 Cold wave (relatively high)
46 Lincoln County Relatively low 48.4 Heat wave (relatively moderate)
47 Amite County Relatively low 48.2 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
48 Smith County Relatively low 47.2 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
49 Chickasaw County Relatively low 43.9 Strong wind (relatively high)
50 Tippah County Relatively low 43.8 Tornado (relatively moderate)
51 Union County Relatively low 43.5 Cold wave (relatively moderate)
52 Clay County Very low 42.5 Tornado (relatively moderate)
53 Greene County Very low 42.2 Hurricane (relatively moderate)
54 Tate County Very low 41.2 Tornado (relatively moderate)
55 Tallahatchie County Very low 40.1 Drought (relatively moderate)
56 Winston County Very low 39.9 Tornado (relatively moderate)
57 Jasper County Very low 38.9 Tornado (relatively moderate)
58 Tishomingo County Very low 37.1 Cold wave (relatively moderate)
59 Tunica County Very low 36.3 Drought (relatively moderate)
60 Clarke County Very low 36 Lightning (relatively moderate)
61 Attala County Very low 34.2 Tornado (relatively moderate)
62 Wilkinson County Very low 33.5 Lightning (relatively high)
63 Noxubee County Very low 29 Drought (relatively moderate)
64 Humphreys County Very low 27.9 Drought (relatively high)
65 Calhoun County Very low 27.7 Drought (relatively moderate)
66 Walthall County Very low 25.5 Strong wind (relatively moderate)
67 Lawrence County Very low 25 Hurricane (relatively low)
68 Claiborne County Very low 24.7 Tornado (relatively moderate)
69 Carroll County Very low 23.3 Strong wind (relatively moderate)
70 Jefferson Davis County Very low 23.1 Hurricane (relatively low)
71 Perry County Very low 19.5 Hurricane (relatively low)
72 Yalobusha County Very low 19.5 Lightning (relatively moderate)
73 Quitman County Very low 18.5 Drought (relatively moderate)
74 Franklin County Very low 17.3 Hurricane (relatively low)
75 Sharkey County Very low 15.8 Drought (relatively moderate)
76 Benton County Very low 15.2 Earthquake (relatively low)
77 Kemper County Very low 14.9 Hurricane (relatively low)
78 Webster County Very low 12.6 Earthquake (relatively low)
79 Choctaw County Very low 11.5 Strong wind (relatively moderate)
80 Jefferson County Very low 11.3 Heat wave (relatively low)
81 Montgomery County Very low 10.9 Drought (relatively low)
82 Issaquena County Very low 8 Drought (relatively moderate)

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

Which county in Mississippi has the highest natural disaster risk?

Harrison County has the highest composite risk score in Mississippi in FEMA's National Risk Index: 95.6, rated relatively high.

Which county in Mississippi has the lowest natural disaster risk?

Issaquena County has the lowest composite risk score in Mississippi: 8.0, rated very low. A low score means lower modelled risk compared with other US counties, not no risk.

What natural disasters is Mississippi most at risk from?

Across Mississippi, the hazards rated highest in the most counties are lightning, tornado, strong wind, according to FEMA's National Risk Index. Each county page lists all 18 hazards.

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