Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA puts Somers’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 62% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Somers gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns, #17 of 155 in Connecticut. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 2005.
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 Somers 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 Somers’ grade
River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Somers, and Somers’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 61% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 7% (higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts).
B #17 of 155 in Connecticut; lower expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Somers’ residents live in 3 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, Somers has less expected damage per building than 90% of Connecticut towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.1M a year in losses across Somers: $2.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Somers flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 2005
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Somers, from FEMA’s records: 2.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 62% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Somers 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 Somers
Disasters that paid out in Somers itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Somers), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2020Tropical Storm Isaias$38K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2015Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$58K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2013Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$36K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$23K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2011Severe Storm$961K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2011Tropical Storm Irene$27K to the Town of Somers for repairs
Show all 12
- 2011Snowstorm$40K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2006Snow$16K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$98K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2005Record Snow$20K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2003Snow$25K to the Town of Somers for repairs
- 2003Snow$18K to the Town of Somers for repairs
Old photos of Somers after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Somers archive →Somers and its neighbors
Somers has the lowest expected damage per building of the 4 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Somers | Bless damage than 62% | river and rain flooding | 7 |
| Ellington | B−less damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Enfield | Cmore damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | 46 |
| Stafford | Cmore damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 16 |
| Hazardville | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Crystal Lake | — | 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 Somers 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 Somers
Is Somers at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Somers has lower expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #17 of 155 in Connecticut. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%) and hurricanes (7%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Somers flood?
Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Somers since 2005, $264K in all, or 2.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 62% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Somers 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, 32% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Somers?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Somers’ 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 Somers?
By FEMA money that reached Somers, Severe Storm (2011): $961K to the Town of Somers for repairs.
Is Somers at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Somers’ rate for it is higher than 61% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Somers.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Somers’ 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.