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SouthCanaanCongregationalChurch 737Photo: Doncram · CC BY-SA 3.0
CHazard risk
Natural hazards in Canaan · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Canaan than in 68% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Canaan gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 1984.

River and rain flooding 84%Hurricanes 9%Earthquakes 3%

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

more than 68%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C
in Connecticut · higher than 68% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
84% of expected building damage
Flood claims
3
paid since 1984 · $11K
By hazard

What Canaan 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

84%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 80% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

9%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 11 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Ice storms Strong wind Hail Wildfire Winter storms Landslides Cold waves Heat waves Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Canaan’s grade

River and rain flooding is 84% of the building damage FEMA expects in Canaan, and Canaan’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 80% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 9% (higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Canaan sits
Canaan
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C higher expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Canaan’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding84%Hurricanes9%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $521K a year in losses across Canaan: $476K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Canaan’s 1,080 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Falls Village CDP (383 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Canaan flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 1984

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Canaan, from FEMA’s records: 4.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 57% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 2 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims19842011
19842026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irene1 claim · $4K
3
paid claims since 1984
$11K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$4K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Canaan isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: the county.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Canaan

Disasters that paid out in Canaan itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Canaan), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2005Record Snow$5K to the Town of Canaan for repairs
  2. 2003Snow$6K to the Town of Canaan for repairs
  3. 2003Snow$4K to the Town of Canaan for repairs
Were you here?

Old photos of Canaan after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Canaan archive →
Next door

Canaan and its neighbors

Canaan is 3rd of the 5 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Salisbury: hazard risk C+Falls Village: not gradedNorfolk: hazard risk C+North Canaan: hazard risk C−Cornwall: hazard risk C−SalisburyFalls VillageNorfolkNorth CanaanCornwallCanaan
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
SalisburyC+more damage than 61%river and rain flooding5
NorfolkC+more damage than 64%river and rain flooding1
CanaanCmore damage than 68%river and rain flooding3
CornwallC−more damage than 79%river and rain flooding2
North CanaanC−more damage than 85%river and rain flooding12
Falls Village—410 residents; we grade 1,000+

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Canaan faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Hurricane season
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Canaan

Is Canaan at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Canaan has higher expected damage per building than 68% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%) and hurricanes (9%). 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.

Does Canaan flood?

Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Canaan since 1984, $11K in all, or 4.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 57% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Irene (1).

Is Canaan 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 the county, 0.7% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Canaan?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Canaan’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 Canaan?

By FEMA money that reached Canaan, Snow (2003): $6K to the Town of Canaan for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irene: 1 paid, $4K.

Is Canaan at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (84%), and Canaan’s rate for it is higher than 80% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Canaan.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Canaan’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.