Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Seymour faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seymour gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns, #61 of 155 in Connecticut. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%), then hurricanes (21%). Flood insurance has paid 22 claims here since 1980.
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 Seymour 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 Seymour’s grade
River and rain flooding is 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Seymour, and Seymour’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 63% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 21% (higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts).
C+ #61 of 155 in Connecticut; higher expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Seymour’s residents live in 4 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, Seymour has less expected damage per building than 61% of Connecticut towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.7M a year in losses across Seymour: $4.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Seymour flood? Sometimes: 22 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Seymour, from FEMA’s records: 3.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 51% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Seymour 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.12 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Seymour
Disasters that paid out in Seymour itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Seymour), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$625K to the Town of Seymour for repairs7 flood claims paid that year
- 2018Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds$204K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
- 2015Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$37K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
- 2013Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$156K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$140K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
- 2011Severe Storm$107K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
Show all 12
- 2011Tropical Storm Irene$87K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
- 2011Snowstorm$44K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
- 2006Snow$34K to the Town of Seymour for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
- 2005Record Snow$36K to the Town of Seymour for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
- 2003Snow$37K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
- 2003Snow$20K to the Town of Seymour for repairs
Old photos of Seymour after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Seymour archive →Seymour and its neighbors
Seymour is 4th 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethany | B+less damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Woodbridge | B−more damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 60 |
| Oxford | B−more damage than 52% | river and rain flooding | 99 |
| Seymour | C+more damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | 22 |
| Shelton | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 138 |
| Ansonia | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Beacon Falls | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Derby | C−more damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 28 |
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 Seymour 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 Seymour
Is Seymour at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Seymour has higher expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #61 of 155 in Connecticut. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%) and hurricanes (21%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Seymour flood?
Flood insurance has paid 22 claims in Seymour since 1980, $1.6M in all, or 3.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 51% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Seymour 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, 38% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Seymour?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Seymour’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 Seymour?
By FEMA money that reached Seymour, Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2024): $625K to the Town of Seymour for repairs.
Is Seymour at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Seymour’s rate for it is higher than 63% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Seymour.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Seymour’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.