Where are the safest states? Georgia ranks near bottom of the list

A small community is reeling after a mass shooting at a block party left two dead and more than 30 injured in central Georgia.

There have now been more than 150 mass shootings that have taken place in Georgia since 2020, and gun deaths across the state have been on the rise in recent years. Violent crime, however, has gone down in Atlanta

over the past year, resulting in fewer homicides, rapes and robberies.

So, how does Georgia compare to other states when it comes to safety? It's near the bottom of the list.

In a new report from WalletHub, Georgia ranked 41st among U.S. states for overall safety, ranging from assaults to climate disasters to unemployment rates.

Here's why.

What are the safest states in the U.S.?

"The safest states in America protect their residents from harm in a multitude

of different ways, from keeping crime rates low and maintaining safe roadways to have strong economies and job markets that prevent people from falling into dangerous financial situations," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in a statement. "They have high levels of occupational safety and disaster preparedness, too. In addition, states are made safer by efforts that individual residents take, such as forming a neighborhood watch or working in firefighting and EMT jobs at high rates."

The analysis used 52 key safety indicators across five categories: personal and residential safety, financial safety, road safety, workplace safety and emergency preparedness.

Personal and residential safety includes factors like assaults, overdoses, mass shootings, sex offenses, police capacity and more while the other categories take on a wider definition of safety.

Here are the top 10 safest states in America, according to WalletHub:

1. Vermont
2. Massachusetts
3. Maine
4. New Hampshire
5. Connecticut
6. Utah
7. Minnesota
8. Indiana
9. Rhode Island
10. Hawaii

Georgia on the bottom of the list

Georgia, however, ranks low across the categories.

The state ranks 34th in personal and residential safety, 47th in financial safety, 35th in road safety, 32nd in workplace safety and 38th in emergency preparedness, coming to a final spot as 41st overall.

Here are the 10 least safe states in America, according to WalletHub:

1. Georgia
2. Alabama
3. Colorado
4. Missouri
5. Oklahoma
6. Arkansas
7. Florida
8. Texas
9. Louisiana
10. Mississippi

Source: WalletHub

Irene Wright is the Atlanta Connect reporter with USA Today’s Deep South Connect team. Find her on X @IreneEWright or email her at [e-mail].

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Where are the safest states? Georgia ranks near bottom of the list