Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Lyme faces more hazard damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lyme gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%). Flood insurance has paid 21 claims here since 1978.
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 Lyme 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
Hurricanes
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 Lyme’s grade
River and rain flooding is 85% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lyme, and Lyme’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 2%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Lyme’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Lyme: $1.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lyme flood? Sometimes: 21 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lyme, from FEMA’s records: 17.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 82% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The March 2010 nor’easter4 claims · $40K
- Hurricane Irene3 claims · $255K
Lyme 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.Lyme and its neighbors
Lyme is 8th of the 8 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salem | Bless damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| East Haddam | Bless damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 38 |
| Old Lyme | Bless damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 309 |
| Essex | C+more damage than 59% | river and rain flooding | 63 |
| Deep River | Cmore damage than 66% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| East Lyme | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 195 |
| Chester | Cmore damage than 71% | river and rain flooding | 34 |
| Lyme | Cmore damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 21 |
| Essex Village | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Deep River Center | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
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.
Get ready for what Lyme faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Lyme
Is Lyme at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lyme has higher expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%) and hurricanes (10%). 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 Lyme flood?
Flood insurance has paid 21 claims in Lyme since 1978, $696K in all, or 17.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 82% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 3 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from March 2010 Nor'easter (4).
Is Lyme 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, 42% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 4.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Lyme?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lyme’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 Lyme?
By flood claims, March 2010 Nor'easter: 4 paid, $40K.
Is Lyme at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (85%), and Lyme’s rate for it is higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lyme.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lyme’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.