Photo: Juliejules · CC BY 3.0Old Saybrook’s building-damage rate from coastal flooding is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Old Saybrook gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns, #35 of 155 in Connecticut. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (55%), then coastal flooding (26%). Flood insurance has paid 628 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 stands out about Old Saybrook’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Old Saybrook 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
Coastal 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 Old Saybrook’s grade
River and rain flooding is 55% of the building damage FEMA expects in Old Saybrook, and Old Saybrook’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 63% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 26%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
B− #35 of 155 in Connecticut; lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Old Saybrook’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Connecticut town has higher expected damage than 62% of U.S. towns; within the state, Old Saybrook has less expected damage per building than 78% of Connecticut towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.9M a year in losses across Old Saybrook: $3.8M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Old Saybrook flood? Yes: 628 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Old Saybrook, from FEMA’s records: 104.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Sandy251 claims · $10.2M
- Hurricane Irene110 claims · $3.2M
- Hurricane Gloria59 claims · $340K
Old Saybrook 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.8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Old Saybrook
Disasters that paid out in Old Saybrook itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Old Saybrook), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2021Hurricane Henri$37K to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs4 flood claims paid that year
- 2020Tropical Storm Isaias$160K to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs
- 2013Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$74K to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$1.7M to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs251 flood claims paid for it, $10.2M
- 2011Tropical Storm Irene$432K to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs110 flood claims paid for it, $3.2M
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$66K to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs34 flood claims paid that year
Show all 8
- 2005Record Snow$35K to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs8 flood claims paid that year
- 2003Snow$17K to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs
Old photos of Old Saybrook after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Old Saybrook archive →Old Saybrook and its neighbors
Old Saybrook is 2nd of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old Lyme | Bless damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 309 |
| Old Saybrook | B−less damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 628 |
| Westbrook | C+more damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | 398 |
| Essex | C+more damage than 59% | river and rain flooding | 63 |
| Essex Village | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Saybrook Manor | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Westbrook Center | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Old Saybrook 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 Old Saybrook 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.
- Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
- Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
- Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
- 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 Old Saybrook
Is Old Saybrook at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Old Saybrook has lower expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #35 of 155 in Connecticut. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (55%) and coastal flooding (26%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Old Saybrook flood?
Flood insurance has paid 628 claims in Old Saybrook since 1978, $15.2M in all, or 104.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 89 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Sandy (251).
Is Old Saybrook 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 Old Saybrook?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Old Saybrook’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 Old Saybrook?
By FEMA money that reached Old Saybrook, Hurricane Sandy (2012): $1.7M to the Town of Old Saybrook for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Sandy: 251 paid, $10.2M.
Is Old Saybrook at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (55%), and Old Saybrook’s rate for it is lower than 63% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Old Saybrook.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Old Saybrook’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.