By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

Residents in multiple Shelby County cities live in some of the safest places in the state, according to a list recently published by a national safety-related website.

Backgroundchecks.org recently released its list of “Safest cities in Alabama 2016,” and four local municipalities made the cut.

According to the list, the website based its rankings on FBI violent crime statistics and “proprietary Backgroundchecks.org research data.” The rates are balanced for each city by averaging crime rates per 100,000 residents.

Following Mountain Brook and Vestavia Hills in Jefferson County, Helena was the top-ranked Shelby County city on the list.

Helena, which was recently included on Money’s list of the best places to live in the United States, recorded a violent crime rate of 64.4 per 100,000 residents. Helena residents have a 1-percent chance of being affected by property crime in the city.

Taking the No. 4 spot was Hoover, which posted a per-capita violent crime rate of 104.5 per 100,000 residents.

Hoover residents have a 2.6-percent chance of being affected by property crime, according to the list.

Shelby County’s largest city, Alabaster, came in at No. 10 on the list, posting a per-capita violent crime rate of 158.5 per 100,000 residents.

Alabaster residents have a 2.2-percent chance of being affected by a property crime.

Following just behind Alabaster, Pelham posted a per-capita violent crime rate of 165.5 per 100,000 residents. Pelham residents have a 2.1-percent chance of being affected by a property crime, according to the website.

Other cities making the list were Eufaula, Athens, Hartselle, Moody, Fort Payne, Pleasant Grove, Prattville, Gardendale, Madison, Auburn, Sylacauga, Saraland, Hueytown, Fairhope, Jacksonville, Oxford, Foley, Montgomery and Enterprise.

To view the entire list, visit Backgroundchecks.org/25-safest-cities-in-alabama-2016.html.