BlockBefore

Empire, Alabama

21 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1893 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the Empire census division. It lies in ZIP code area 35063. It lies near Briceston Hollow. The Survey maps it on the Sipsey quadrangle. It stands 509 feet above sea level.

Empire within Walker County

Topographic sheets covering this place

8 surveys from 21 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

231 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 231 fires within 5 miles of Empire between 1994 and 2020, burning about 4,623 acres in total. 3 started naturally. 96 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Arson/incendiarism96
Debris and open burning79
Missing data/not specified/undetermined29
Recreation and ceremony12
Misuse of fire by a minor3
Equipment and vehicle use3
Other causes3
Natural3
Railroad operations and maintenance2
Fireworks1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
7 September 1995Debris and open burningunder an acreAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
4 September 2010Debris and open burning25 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
4 September 2007Arson/incendiarism1.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
4 September 1999Misuse of fire by a minorunder an acreAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
29 September 2000Arson/incendiarism2.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named
28 September 2014Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreAlabama Forestry CommissionNWR-20140928-001
26 September 2019Natural12 acresAlabama Forestry Commission20190926-10
25 September 2010Other causes2.0 acresAlabama Forestry Commissionnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Walker County

Storms near this place

8 since 2008

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Empire in 8 storm reports between 2008 and 2019: 6 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
October 2009Thunderstorm WindEmpire$40,000A total of 20 to 30 large diameter hardwood trees were uprooted across several locations around the Empire community. One home sustained damage from the fallen trees, and 4 outbuildings were also damaged. A manufactured home had its roof peeled off. Winds were estimated at 70 to 80 mph.
December 2008Thunderstorm WindEmpire$1,000Several trees were blown down near the intersection of Empire Road and Hill Road.
March 2019Thunderstorm WindEmpire-Several trees uprooted and power lines downed.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindEmpire-Several trees uprooted and power lines downed on Hill Road.
May 2012Thunderstorm WindEmpire-Trees were blown down and blocking the intersection of Empire Rd and Little Vine Rd, northeast of Empire.
April 2012HailEmpire-no account filed
April 2012Thunderstorm WindEmpire-no account filed
March 2012HailEmpire-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Walker County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Debardeleben0.9 miles21
Creel0.9 miles23
Drummond1.8 miles21
Coon Creek1.8 miles21
Black Warrior Town (historical)2.2 miles21
Dilworth2.3 miles21
York Mountain2.5 miles23
Campbellville3.1 miles21

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on EmpireAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q5373993The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 117987. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.