Natural disaster risk in Brooks County, Texas

Texas · population 7,053 · FIPS 48047

Overall: relatively low risk

Brooks County has a composite risk score of 60.8 out of 100 — higher than 60% of US counties. It ranks 105 of 254 in Texas (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are cold wave, hurricane, hail.

Drought now: Yes: D3 Extreme Drought, 6 weeks

Yes. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 19.11% of Brooks County is in D3 Extreme Drought. Some of it has been at D3 or worse for 6 weeks in a row. In all, 100% of the county is in drought (D1 to D4).

Drought in Brooks 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 60.8
Expected annual loss
About $13.5 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards.
Very low 46.7
Social vulnerability
Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover.
Very high 88.9
Community resilience
Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover.
Very low 3.3

Risk by hazard

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

HazardRisk rating and score
Cold wave Relatively high 97
Hurricane Relatively moderate 81
Hail Relatively low 61
Ice storm Relatively low 28
Wildfire Very low 60
Heat wave Very low 33
Drought Very low 25
Tornado Very low 20
Inland (riverine) flooding Very low 18
Lightning Very low 8
Winter weather Very low 8
Earthquake Very low 6
Strong wind Very low 5
Landslide Very low 0
Avalanche Not applicable
Coastal flooding Not applicable
Tsunami Not applicable
Volcanic activity Not applicable

FEMA disaster declarations for Brooks County

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

Not since 1 Jan 2024: no FEMA disaster declaration in the records this site read names Brooks County.

All FEMA declarations in Texas, 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 Brooks County, Texas?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in Brooks County as relatively low, with a score of 60.8 out of 100 (higher than 60% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.

What are the biggest natural hazards in Brooks County?

The hazards rated highest for Brooks County are cold wave (relatively high), hurricane (relatively moderate), hail (relatively low).

What is the flood risk in Brooks County?

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

Has Brooks County had a FEMA disaster declaration?

Not since 1 Jan 2024: no FEMA disaster declaration in the records this site read names Brooks County.

Is Brooks County in a drought?

Yes. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 19.11% of Brooks County is in D3 Extreme Drought. Some of it has been at D3 or worse for 6 weeks in a row. In all, 100% of the county is in drought (D1 to D4).

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