FEMA Records
20
Above median
Georgia · FEMA + NOAA + National Risk Index
Gilmer County, GA
20 FEMA disaster declarations (1974-2026), with a FEMA National Risk Index rating of Relatively Low. Most common hazard: Hurricane.
- 20
- FEMA declarations
- 12
- Major disasters
- 68
- NRI risk · Relatively Low
- Hurricane
- Top hazard
The verdict
Two federal records point in the busier direction for Gilmer County. Its 20 FEMA declarations are 15% above the Georgia county mean and exceed the count for 46% of the 3,266 counties in this registry. Separately, FEMA's National Risk Index places it in the riskiest 32%, based on modeled expected annual loss, social vulnerability, and community resilience.
- Riskiest 32%
- of U.S. counties for FEMA National Risk Index score
- Relatively Low
- FEMA National Risk Index rating
- 20
- FEMA declarations vs 21 national county avg
- 197
- NFIP flood insurance claims filed
FEMA's National Risk Index and its declaration registry are separate measures. This county's registry includes Major Disaster (DR) and Emergency (EM) records; an EM authorizes a narrower set of federal assistance than a DR.
FEMA OpenFEMA declaration desk
County FIPS 13123 · Gilmer County 20 declarations · rank 1747/3,266
DECL-HEAVY · MAJOR-MID · RANK-LOWER · PHOTO-FINISH · NRI-LOW · ACT-HIGH · TYPE-LEAD · VS-ST-ABOVE
- DECL-HEAVY 20
- MAJOR-MID 60%
- RANK-LOWER #1,747
- PHOTO-FINISH Monona
- NRI-LOW 68
- ACT-HIGH High
- TYPE-LEAD Hurricane
- VS-ST-ABOVE +15%
Nearest declaration peer: Monona, IA (0 declaration gap)
FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 filing stamps for this county register. Read with this county → · Georgia state profile
Gilmer County in the declaration-count neighbourhood
FEMA declaration records among Gilmer County and nearest peers by total count
- Los Angeles · largest
Los Angeles · largest
88 declarations
- Cleveland · near 20
Cleveland · near
20 declarations
- Gilmer · this county 20
Gilmer · this county
20 declarations
- Monona · near 20
Monona · near
20 declarations
- Tallapoosa · near 20
Tallapoosa · near
20 declarations
- Ujelang · smallest 1
Ujelang · smallest
1 declarations
What this shows Gilmer County carries 20 FEMA declaration records, ranked 1747 of 3,266 counties in this registry.
How Gilmer County's FEMA declaration count compares nationally
Gilmer County vs. all counties in this dataset
FEMA disaster declarations, all-time · Gilmer County
20 46th percentile higher than 46% of 3,266 counties
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source FEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 · 2026-08-25
Gilmer County's FEMA Risk Index score
Which hazard drives modeled loss here?
FEMA's modeled annual dollar loss for Gilmer County is led by Riverine Flooding (about $11.7M Expected Annual Loss, Historical Loss Ratio Relatively High), while Landslide carries the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Moderate). EAL and risk score use different inputs; they need not agree.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025 release) - Expected Annual Loss vs composite risk rating by hazard.
What does Gilmer County's hazard record show?
Reading the federal records together
The NFIP claims register shows a middle-volume loss record here: 197 paid claims, totaling $5.2M. PlainHazard uses 50-499 claims for this descriptive band; FEMA does not publish it as a safety or coverage category. The $26.4K average describes payments on recorded claims only, leaving uninsured damage and properties without a claim outside the measure.
The declaration register points in the busier direction. Gilmer County's 20 federal records stand 15% above the Georgia county mean of 17.4. That comparison describes how often federal action was recorded, including any Major Disaster, Emergency, and Fire Management entries shown on this page; it does not convert the count into future probability.
FEMA National Risk Index
This county carries a high composite score on FEMA's National Risk Index, 68.1/100, rated Relatively Low. Its Expected Annual Loss rating is Relatively Low (roughly $19.3M in annualized losses), and a Relatively High social-vulnerability profile combined with Very Low community resilience shapes how much of that raw exposure becomes realized harm. Among the 18 modeled hazards, Landslide carries the county's highest rating, a mid-range Relatively Moderate. FEMA's modeled frequency puts that hazard at an average of 1.6 times per year here.
63 /100
Historical Activity Index
High historical activity
Gilmer County, GA · PlainHazard-derived composite from federal records
This 0–100 index is an explicit PlainHazard composite from FEMA declaration history only on the county surface (this DB has no county-level NOAA damage row) . It is not FEMA's National Risk Index, not a forecast, and not a safety, insurance, or preparedness rating. Open the calculator · Methodology
FEMA Declarations (1953–present) Moderate
14/30
20 OpenFEMA declarations, full ingest window (1.0x national county average)
County Disaster Density High
14/25
20 declarations (1.2x state county average of 17)
Major Disaster Share High
15/25
12 of 20 declarations are major disasters (60%)
Hazard Diversity Very High
20/20
9 different disaster types declared in Gilmer County
FEMA NRI 8-hazard radar - Gilmer County
How to read this radar
Each axis: NRI risk rating (Very Low-Very High) on a 0-100 scale. Rounder = broad exposure; spiky = one or two hazards dominate.
Major Disaster share
60%
Major-heavy
NRI risk score
68
Relatively Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Per-county per-hazard ratings, December 2025 release
How often does each hazard strike Gilmer County?
FEMA's National Risk Index models a historical event count and an annualized frequency for each hazard type. Most hazards are expressed as modeled occurrences per year; FEMA expresses drought and heat-wave frequency as event-days per year. These modeled frequencies are not forecasts.
| Hazard | NRI Risk Rating | Recurrence |
|---|---|---|
| Landslide | Relatively Moderate | an average of 1.6 times per year |
| Cold Wave | Relatively Moderate | an average of 2.4 times per year |
| Lightning | Relatively Moderate | an average of 61 times per year |
| Riverine Flooding | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 1 years |
| Tornado | Relatively Moderate | roughly once every 4 years |
| Earthquake | Relatively Low | roughly once every 355 years |
| Wildfire | Relatively Low | roughly once every 669 years |
| Drought | Relatively Low | 38 modeled event-days per year |
| Hurricane | Relatively Low | roughly once every 57 years |
| Strong Wind | Relatively Moderate | an average of 3.4 times per year |
| Hail | Relatively Low | an average of 5.3 times per year |
| Ice Storm | Relatively Low | roughly once every 1 years |
| Winter Weather | Relatively Low | an average of 7.5 times per year |
| Heat Wave | Very Low | 0.1 modeled event-days per year |
Source: FEMA National Risk Index Modeled annualized frequency; drought and heat wave use event-days/year, December 2025 release
Disaster Types
Hurricane 7
Severe Storm 4
Biological 2
Severe Ice Storm 2
Winter Storm 1
Tropical Storm 1
Snowstorm 1
Flood 1
Tornado 1
What Hurricane declarations mean here
Hurricane is the most frequent declaration type on Gilmer County's federal record, 35% of its declarations. Atlantic tropical systems run on a defined season, 1 June to 30 November, with most activity concentrated between August and October; Pacific and territorial basins run on their own calendars. A single named storm routinely produces one declaration number covering a long corridor of counties at once, well inland as well as on the coast, which is why an affected county's count can jump by several in one year without several separate events having occurred.
One practical distinction matters when reading these records: a tropical declaration usually bundles wind, storm surge and inland rainfall flooding under a single incident, but the insurance behind them is split. Wind damage falls to property insurers, while flood and surge damage is covered only under a separate National Flood Insurance Program policy. That is why a county can show heavy declaration activity and a comparatively small NFIP claims record, or the reverse.
Declaration counts describe past federal action. They are a record of what was declared, not a forecast of future hazard probability.
Declaration Types
What DR / EM / FM mean
FEMA categorizes declarations as Major Disasters (DR), Emergencies (EM), or Fire Management Assistance (FM).
Major Disaster - 12 60.0%
of all 20 declarations
Emergency - 8 40.0%
of all 20 declarations
FEMA Declarations Timeline
| Year | Declarations | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2017 | 2 | |
| 2016 | 1 | |
| 2014 | 2 | |
| 2005 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 1 | |
| 2000 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 1 | |
| 1993 | 1 | |
| 1990 | 1 | |
| 1979 | 1 | |
| 1974 | 1 | |
Disaster Declarations
How the 20 FEMA declarations break into federal action codes (DR / EM / FM). Same DISTINCT grain as the table below.
Download these 20 declarations as CSV . FEMA source data is public domain; our derived presentation is CC0.
| DR# | Title | Type | Incident | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3642 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Winter Storm | 2026-01-24 |
| 4830 | HURRICANE HELENE | DR | Hurricane | 2024-09-30 |
| 3616 | HURRICANE HELENE | EM | Tropical Storm | 2024-09-26 |
| 4600 | SEVERE STORMS AND TORNADOES | DR | Severe Storm | 2021-05-05 |
| 4579 | TROPICAL STORM ZETA | DR | Hurricane | 2021-01-12 |
| 4501 | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR | Biological | 2020-03-29 |
| 3464 | COVID-19 | EM | Biological | 2020-03-13 |
| 4338 | HURRICANE IRMA | DR | Hurricane | 2017-09-15 |
| 3387 | HURRICANE IRMA | EM | Hurricane | 2017-09-08 |
| 4259 | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 2016-02-26 |
| 4165 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR | Severe Ice Storm | 2014-03-06 |
| 3368 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM | Severe Ice Storm | 2014-02-11 |
| 3218 | HURRICANE KATRINA EVACUATION | EM | Hurricane | 2005-09-05 |
| 1554 | HURRICANE IVAN | DR | Hurricane | 2004-09-18 |
| 1311 | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR | Severe Storm | 2000-01-28 |
| 1071 | HURRICANE OPAL | DR | Hurricane | 1995-10-10 |
| 3097 | SEVERE SNOWFALL, WINTER STORM | EM | Snowstorm | 1993-03-15 |
| 857 | SEVERE STORMS, TORNAODES & FLOODING | DR | Severe Storm | 1990-02-23 |
| 3072 | RAIN, FLOODING, MUDSLIDE | EM | Flood | 1979-03-13 |
| 425 | TORNADOES | DR | Tornado | 1974-04-05 |
Storm Events in Georgia
Statewide NOAA context only. PlainHazard does not currently attribute these state totals to Gilmer County.
| Storm Type | Events | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 9,617 | 15 | 75 | $65.4M |
| Drought | 1,363 | 0 | 0 | $0 |
| Hail | 1,257 | 0 | 0 | $61.8M |
| Flash Flood | 1,154 | 0 | 3 | $29.3M |
| Tropical Storm | 655 | 28 | 19 | $855.3M |
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database State-level aggregated data, 2015-2025
NFIP Flood Insurance Claims
Total Claims
197
Total Paid
$5.2M
Avg Per Claim
$26.4K
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA Claims Data
FEMA National Risk Index
Overall Risk
Relatively Low
Score: 68.1/100
Expected Annual Loss
Relatively Low
$19.3M/year
Social Vulnerability
Relatively High
Community Resilience
Very Low
Hazard Risk Breakdown
Landslide Relatively Moderate
Cold Wave Relatively Moderate
Lightning Relatively Moderate
Riverine Flooding Relatively Moderate
Tornado Relatively Moderate
Earthquake Relatively Low
Wildfire Relatively Low
Drought Relatively Low
Hurricane Relatively Low
Strong Wind Relatively Moderate
Hail Relatively Low
Ice Storm Relatively Low
Winter Weather Relatively Low
Heat Wave Very Low
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) Ratings reflect relative scores among all US counties. Data: hazards.fema.gov/nri
The model's sharpest exposure here: Landslide
Landslide risk is a function of slope, soil and water, so it is usually a SECOND-ORDER hazard: it is triggered by the rainfall, snowmelt, wildfire burn scars or seismic shaking that came first. That is why a county can carry high landslide exposure whose realized damage is recorded under a flood or storm declaration instead.
Worth noting for Gilmer County: the model and the federal record do NOT point at the same hazard. Landslide carries the highest modeled rating (Relatively Moderate), while the county's declaration history is led by Hurricane. That is not a contradiction, the two measure genuinely different things. Declarations record federal ACTION, which requires damage costly enough to exceed state and local capacity; the Risk Index models EXPECTED annual loss across all 18 hazards whether or not any declaration ever followed. A hazard can be the county's largest modeled exposure and never once have driven a declaration.
National Risk Index ratings are modeled estimates of expected annual loss, not predictions of what will happen in any given year.
Data-matched county comparisons
Gilmer County's closest FEMA peer: Scott County, VA
Comparisons use published FEMA declaration fields plus the National Risk Index composite for Gilmer County. Record similarity, not a safety rating.
Closest declaration profiles
Gilmer County shows 20 FEMA declarations, led by Hurricane.
Similar Major-disaster share
Gilmer County: 12 of 20 of its declarations are Major.
Similar modeled NRI score
Gilmer County: NRI composite 68.1 (Relatively Low).
How these peers are chosen
Cohort: Published U.S. county equivalents outside the source state or territory. Each metric keeps six ETL candidates; three unique destinations are shown after de-duplicating across axes. Declaration-volume ranking combines count and Major-disaster share and prefers a different leading incident type; Major-share ranks the Major fraction adjusted for volume; NRI ranks the modeled composite score only.
Retained FEMA snapshot feed for Gilmer County - capture-dated entries only.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by NRI score & FEMA declaration volume
Two PlainHazard-derived comparison paths for Gilmer County: nearest out-of-state National Risk Index composite and nearest FEMA declaration count (floor ≥5 records). Record similarity only, not a forecast of the next hazard.
Similar NRI composite
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA NRI score. This county: 68.1 (Relatively Low).
Similar declaration volume
Nearest out-of-state counties by FEMA declaration count. This county: 20. NRI peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Further reading for this county
Understanding disaster data
Gilmer County's NFIP claims file (197 claims) and FEMA declaration history measure different federal records - this guide separates them from modeled NRI risk.
More PlainHazard guides
- Most disaster-prone counties - U.S. counties ranked by FEMA declaration totals.
- Understanding disaster data - declarations vs storm events vs NRI scores.
- Preparing for natural disasters - household checklist (not county-specific advice).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most common disaster type in Gilmer County?
The most common disaster type in Gilmer County is Hurricane, with 7 declarations. Other disaster types include Severe Storm (4), Biological (2), Severe Ice Storm (2).
How does Gilmer County's FEMA declaration record compare with the Georgia average?
FEMA lists 20 declaration records for Gilmer County. That is 15% above the Georgia county mean of 17.4. Its count is also 3% below the national county mean of 20.7. A larger declaration history records more federal actions; it is not a forecast of the county's next hazard.
How many major FEMA disaster declarations has Gilmer County received?
Gilmer County has received 12 major disaster declarations, representing 60% of all 20 disaster declarations.
How many flood insurance claims has Gilmer County filed?
Gilmer County has 197 National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims totaling $5.2M in payments, with an average of $26.4K per claim.
Does FEMA's top risk-rated hazard match the highest Expected Annual Loss in Gilmer County?
No. In Gilmer County, Landslide has the highest National Risk Index rating (Relatively Moderate), while Riverine Flooding leads Expected Annual Loss at about $11.7M. FEMA's risk score and dollar-loss model use different inputs, so the leaders often differ.
What was the worst year for disasters in Gilmer County?
The most active year for disaster declarations in Gilmer County was 2014, with 2 declarations. The county has FEMA disaster data spanning 1974 to 2026.
What is the FEMA National Risk Index score for Gilmer County?
According to the FEMA National Risk Index, Gilmer County, Georgia has an overall risk score of 68.1 out of 100 (Relatively Low). On social vulnerability the county rates Relatively High; on community resilience, Very Low. The Expected Annual Loss (EAL) score is Relatively Low, representing $19.3M in annualized losses.
Which natural hazard poses the greatest risk to Gilmer County?
FEMA's NRI data points to Gilmer County is Landslide (risk rating: Relatively Moderate). Other significant hazards include Cold Wave (Relatively Moderate) and Lightning (Relatively Moderate). FEMA's modeled event frequency puts landslide here at an average of 1.6 times per year. The underlying methodology weighs historical event frequency against exposed assets and community vulnerability.
Data Sources & Methodology
Disaster declaration data comes from the FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 API, which includes all federally declared disasters, emergencies, and fire management assistance grants.
Storm event data is sourced from the NOAA Storm Events Database (2015-2025), which tracks significant weather events including thunderstorms, tornadoes, floods, and winter storms.
Flood insurance data comes from the FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) OpenFEMA claims dataset.
This data is provided for informational purposes only. FEMA disaster declarations represent federal response actions and may not capture all local emergencies or weather events.
FEMA OpenFEMA declarations + NRI for Gilmer County · vintage 2026-08-25 · Methodology · Georgia profile · Verify with FEMA OpenFEMA · Verify with NOAA Storm Events