Cherokee, AL
Cherokee County in Alabama has 8 FEMA disaster declarations on record covering 1995–2024, most recently Hurricane Helene on Sep 26, 2024 (DR-3618). Its flood risk grade is A (Low risk), ranking #1032 of 3,277 U.S. counties, with 3 NFIP flood insurance claims totaling $49,023 in payouts. Flood risk is relatively low compared to the national average.
FEMA Disaster Declarations in Cherokee County
The 8 most recent federally declared disasters affecting Cherokee County, AL (1995–2024). Total declarations on record: 8.
| Declared | Incident Type | Title | FEMA Disaster # |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 26, 2024 | Hurricane | Hurricane Helene | DR-3618 |
| Dec 10, 2020 | Hurricane | Hurricane Zeta | DR-4573 |
| Sep 14, 2020 | Hurricane | Hurricane Sally | DR-3545 |
| Sep 11, 2017 | Hurricane | Hurricane Irma | DR-3389 |
| Aug 30, 2008 | Hurricane | Hurricane Gustav | DR-3292 |
| Sep 10, 2005 | Hurricane | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | DR-3237 |
| Sep 15, 2004 | Hurricane | Hurricane Ivan | DR-1549 |
| Oct 4, 1995 | Hurricane | Hurricane Opal | DR-1070 |
Score Breakdown
The composite score of 12 is calculated from four weighted factors. See our methodology for details.
Other Counties in Alabama
| County | Grade | Score | Claims | Disasters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson | A | 12 | 4 | 8 |
| Calhoun | A | 12 | 3 | 8 |
| Chambers | A | 12 | 4 | 9 |
| Colbert | A | 12 | 5 | 8 |
| Lamar | A | 12 | 0 | 8 |
| Lauderdale | A | 12 | 1 | 8 |
More Counties in Alabama
Frequently Asked Questions
How many FEMA disaster declarations does Cherokee County, AL have?
Cherokee County, AL has 8 federal disaster declarations on FEMA record (1995–2024). The 5 most recent are: Hurricane Helene (declared Sep 26, 2024, DR-3618); Hurricane Zeta (declared Dec 10, 2020, DR-4573); Hurricane Sally (declared Sep 14, 2020, DR-3545); Hurricane Irma (declared Sep 11, 2017, DR-3389); Hurricane Gustav (declared Aug 30, 2008, DR-3292). Counts include flood, severe storm, hurricane, and coastal storm declarations from the OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries dataset.
What is the flood risk grade for Cherokee County, AL?
Cherokee County is graded A (composite score 12/100, low risk). It ranks #1032 of 3,277 U.S. counties for flood risk in our scoring model. The grade combines NFIP claims density (40%), disaster frequency (25%), claim severity (20%), and year-over-year trend (15%).
How many NFIP flood insurance claims have been filed in Cherokee County?
3 NFIP flood insurance claims have been filed in Cherokee County, AL, totaling $49,023 in payouts. The average claim is $16,341. Source: FEMA FimaNfipClaims v2 dataset.
Has Cherokee County, AL had any recent flood disasters?
Yes. The most recent FEMA declaration affecting Cherokee County was Hurricane Helene on Sep 26, 2024 (DR-3618). The county has 8 declared disasters in the OpenFEMA record covering 1995–2024.
For this entity, the underlying data on this page comes from FEMA OpenFEMA datasets including the National Flood Hazard Layer and NFIP claims. The breakdown above is the federal record; the paragraphs below add the per-entity context that makes the headline numbers usable for a real decision rather than just a data lookup.
Every number on this page links back to FEMA OpenFEMA datasets including the National Flood Hazard Layer and NFIP claims; the methodology page describes the inputs, refresh cadence, and known limitations of the underlying data product.
For readers using this page as a decision input, the related-entity pages elsewhere on the site provide the comparison set. The most useful comparison for this entity is typically a peer within U.S. ZIPs, counties, and states with similar size, similar exposure, or similar geography — not the national-level summary alone.
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA datasets, 2026.