Natural hazards · Dalton

Dalton, GA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Dalton comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 38 claims here since 1984.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Dalton?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Dalton to be higher than in 41% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and tornadoes.

Inland flooding40%Tornadoes22%Cold waves17%Earthquakes13%Everything else9%

By hazard

What Dalton faces

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

Inland flooding

40% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 44% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

22% of expected damage

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

Cold waves

17% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 87% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

13% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Dalton flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Dalton, from FEMA’s records.

38paid claims since 1984

$4.9Mpaid to owners

3homes flooded more than once

19842026

Biggest named events

Tropical Storm Ivan: 1 claim, $2K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Whitfield County.

Disasters that hit Dalton

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Whitfield County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Dalton itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into DaltonDeclared for Whitfield County only

Whitfield County has had 12 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes 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. Dalton covers 5 census tracts, combined by population.

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

FEMA’s expected losses across Dalton total about $11.5M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

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.