Natural hazards · Malcolm

Malcolm, AL natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Malcolm comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Malcolm?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Malcolm to be higher than in 92% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and hurricanes.

Inland flooding37%Hurricanes32%Tornadoes13%Cold waves5%Everything else13%

By hazard

What Malcolm faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

37% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Hurricanes

32% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 95% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Tornadoes

13% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 9 years in the area

Cold waves

5% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 96% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Lower here

Coastal floodingHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Malcolm flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Malcolm.

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Malcolm isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Washington County.

Disasters that hit Malcolm

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Malcolm itself: aid to households, or repair grants to Malcolm.

Brought FEMA money into MalcolmDeclared for Washington County only

2020

Hurricane Zeta

31 households applied for aid $79K aid approved

2011

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding

3 households applied for aid

2005

Hurricane Katrina

65 households applied for aid $104K aid approved

2004

Hurricane Ivan

77 households applied for aid $105K aid approved

2003

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

23 households applied for aid $29K aid approved

Washington County has had 22 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and severe storms.

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Malcolm is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Malcolm’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Malcolm. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.