Photo: Ken Ratcliff · CC BY 2.0FEMA puts Lillian’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 97% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lillian gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (73%), then river and rain flooding (23%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 stands out about Lillian’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Lillian faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
River and rain flooding
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 Lillian’s grade
Hurricanes are 73% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lillian, and Lillian’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 1%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
D− higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Lillian’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $993K a year in losses across Lillian: $836K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lillian flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Lillian. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Lillian isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Baldwin County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Lillian
Disasters that paid out in Lillian itself (aid to households or repair grants to Lillian), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2020Hurricane Sally866 households applied for aid$657K aid approved
- 2014Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding190 households applied for aid$615K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Katrina56 households applied for aid$35K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Dennis51 households applied for aid$15K aid approved
- 2004Hurricane Ivan1,382 households applied for aid$1.6M aid approved
Baldwin County has had 31 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms.
Old photos of Lillian after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lillian archive →Get ready for what Lillian faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- 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.
- 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 Lillian
Is Lillian at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lillian has higher expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (73%) and river and rain flooding (23%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Lillian 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 Baldwin County, 64% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 9.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Lillian?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lillian’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 Lillian?
By FEMA money that reached Lillian, Hurricane Ivan (2004): 1,382 households applied for aid, $1.6M approved.
Is Lillian at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (73%), and Lillian’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lillian.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lillian’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.