Photo: Amcannally · CC BY-SA 4.0For tornadoes, Gardendale’s building-damage rate is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gardendale gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns, #22 of 187 in Alabama. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (68%), then tornadoes (21%). Flood insurance has paid 8 claims here since 1983.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What Gardendale faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Tornadoes
Earthquakes
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Gardendale’s grade
River and rain flooding is 68% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gardendale, and Gardendale’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 52% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 21%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
B #22 of 187 in Alabama; lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Gardendale’s residents live in 8 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Alabama town has higher expected damage than 66% of U.S. towns; within the state, Gardendale has less expected damage per building than 89% of Alabama towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.6M a year in losses across Gardendale: $2.9M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Gardendale flood? Rarely: 8 flood claims since 1983
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gardendale, from FEMA’s records: 1.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 75% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Gardendale isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Jefferson County.8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Gardendale
Disasters that paid out in Gardendale itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Gardendale), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2014Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding6 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
- 2011Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding58 households applied for aid$1K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
- 2009Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds$33K to the City of Gardendale for repairs
- 2005Hurricane Katrina$56K to the City of Gardendale for repairs
- 2005Hurricane Dennis$20K to the City of Gardendale for repairs
- 2004Hurricane Ivan7 households applied for aid$781 aid approved$71K to the City of Gardendale for repairs
Show all 8
- 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding18 households applied for aid$39K aid approved$38K to the City of Gardendale for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
- 2001Severe Storms and Flooding$43K to the City of Gardendale for repairs
Jefferson County has had 35 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Jefferson County, 2000–2000.
Old photos of Gardendale after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Gardendale archive →Gardendale and its neighbors
Gardendale is 2nd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fultondale | Bless damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Gardendale | Bless damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 8 |
| Mount Olive | Cmore damage than 74% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Brookside | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 22 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Gardendale faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Gardendale
Is Gardendale at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gardendale has lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #22 of 187 in Alabama. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (68%) and tornadoes (21%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Gardendale flood?
Flood insurance has paid 8 claims in Gardendale since 1983, $309K in all, or 1.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 75% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Gardendale in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Jefferson County, 13% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Gardendale?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Gardendale’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Gardendale?
By FEMA money that reached Gardendale, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2003): 18 households applied for aid, $39K approved, and $38K to the City of Gardendale for repairs.
Is Gardendale at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (68%), and Gardendale’s rate for it is higher than 52% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gardendale.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Gardendale’s residents lived in the 2020 census; 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. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.