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Charlemont Town HallPhoto: ToddC4176 · CC BY-SA 3.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Charlemont · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Charlemont faces more hazard damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Charlemont gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 2006.

River and rain flooding 92%Hurricanes 4%Tornadoes 2%

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 85%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in Massachusetts · higher than 85% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
92% of expected building damage
Flood claims
4
paid since 2006 · $49K
Disasters paid out here
10
of 16 declared for Franklin County
By hazard

What Charlemont 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

92%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Ice storms Earthquakes Strong wind Winter storms Landslides top 4% Lightning Hail Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves
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 Charlemont’s grade

River and rain flooding is 92% of the building damage FEMA expects in Charlemont, and Charlemont’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Charlemont sits
Charlemont
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding92%Hurricanes4%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $555K a year in losses across Charlemont: $486K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Charlemont’s 1,185 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Colrain town (1,606 residents) and Heath town (723 residents) and Rowe town (424 residents) and Hawley town (353 residents) and Monroe town (118 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 Charlemont flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 2006

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Charlemont, from FEMA’s records: 6.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 65% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2006: 1 claim2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 3 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 claims20062011
20062026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irene3 claims · $41K
4
paid claims since 2006
$49K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$12K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Franklin County.
Disasters

10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Charlemont

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

  1. 2013Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding$18K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
  2. 2011Severe Storm and Snowstorm$11K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
  3. 2011Tropical Storm Irene67 households applied for aid$189K aid approved$304K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs3 flood claims paid for it, $41K
  4. 2008Severe Winter Storm and Flooding$12K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
  5. 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$165K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
  6. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding1 households applied for aid$129K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
Show all 10
  1. 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$9K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
  2. 2003Snow$8K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
  3. 2003Snow$8K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
  4. 2001Snow$7K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in CharlemontFranklin County only

Franklin County has had 16 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Charlemont archive →
Next door

Charlemont and its neighbors

Charlemont is 4th of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Buckland: hazard risk CRowe: not gradedHeath: not gradedShelburne: hazard risk CFlorida: not gradedHawley: not gradedColrain: hazard risk C−Shelburne Falls: not gradedBucklandRoweHeathShelburneFloridaHawleyColrainShelburne FallsCharlemont
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
BucklandCmore damage than 74%river and rain flooding8
ShelburneCmore damage than 74%river and rain flooding1
ColrainC−more damage than 85%river and rain flooding2
CharlemontC−more damage than 85%river and rain flooding4
Rowe—453 residents; we grade 1,000+
Heath—765 residents; we grade 1,000+
Florida—668 residents; we grade 1,000+
Hawley—277 residents; we grade 1,000+
Shelburne Falls—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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Charlemont 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 ↗
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 Charlemont

Is Charlemont at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Charlemont has higher expected damage per building than 85% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). 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 Charlemont flood?

Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Charlemont since 2006, $49K in all, or 6.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 65% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Irene (3).

Is Charlemont 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 Franklin County, 0.7% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Charlemont?

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

By FEMA money that reached Charlemont, Tropical Storm Irene (2011): 67 households applied for aid, $189K approved, and $304K to the Town of Charlemont for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irene: 3 paid, $41K.

Is Charlemont at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (92%), and Charlemont’s rate for it is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Charlemont.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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