Natural hazards · Etowah

Etowah, AR natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Etowah comes from earthquakes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. 6 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Etowah?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Etowah to be higher than in 82% of U.S. communities, mostly from earthquakes and drought.

Earthquakes41%Drought33%Inland flooding11%Heat waves5%Everything else10%

By hazard

What Etowah faces

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

Earthquakes

41% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 94% of U.S. places

Drought

33% of expected damage

Recorded about 10 times a year in the area

Inland flooding

11% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 43% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Heat waves

5% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 76% of U.S. places

Recorded about 20 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Etowah flood?

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

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Mississippi County.

Disasters that hit Etowah

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into EtowahDeclared for Mississippi County only

2017

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

$55K to the Town of Etowah for repairs

2011

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Associated Flooding

$34K to the Town of Etowah for repairs

2009

Severe Winter Storm

$67K to the Town of Etowah for repairs

2008

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

5 households applied for aid $548 aid approved

2008

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

$43K to the Town of Etowah for repairs

2000

Severe Winter Ice Storm

$7K to the Town of Etowah for repairs

Mississippi County has had 16 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and tornadoes.

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. Etowah 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 Etowah’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Etowah. 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.