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B+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Chelsea · FEMA

Less hazard damage per building is expected in Chelsea than in 67% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chelsea gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns, #184 of 283 in Massachusetts. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (70%), then coastal flooding (11%). Flood insurance has paid 26 claims here since 1978.

River and rain flooding 70%Coastal flooding 11%Hurricanes 9%

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

less than 67%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#184 of 283 in Massachusetts
Hazard risk
B+#184 of 283
in Massachusetts · lower than 67% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
70% of expected building damage
Flood claims
26
paid since 1978 · $160K
Flooded more than once
2
properties
Disasters paid out here
12
of 30 declared for Suffolk County

What stands out about Chelsea’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Lower expected damage than 67% of U.S. townsFEMA’s model of yearly storm and flood damage per dollar of building.Coastal flooding: the top 2% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for coastal flooding here ranks in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts; it is 11.0% of the damage it expects.Remembers 19795 flood claims were paid for 1979 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Chelsea 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

70%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Coastal flooding

11%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts

Hurricanes

9%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 79% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

Earthquakes

7%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Hail Lightning Strong wind Ice storms Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
WildfireAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts heat waves at 8% of Chelsea’s expected losses. Heat waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Chelsea’s grade

River and rain flooding is 70% of the building damage FEMA expects in Chelsea, and Chelsea’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 11%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Chelsea sits
Chelsea
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B+ #184 of 283 in Massachusetts; lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Chelsea’s residents live in 9 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding70%Coastal flooding11%Hurricanes9%Everything else10%

The typical Massachusetts town has lower expected damage than 76% of U.S. towns; within the state, Chelsea has more expected damage per building than 65% of Massachusetts towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.8M a year in losses across Chelsea: $4.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A firm figure. It combines 9 census tracts by where Chelsea’s residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Chelsea flood? Sometimes: 26 flood claims since 1978

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Chelsea, from FEMA’s records: 1.8 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 64% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1978: 1 claim1979: 5 claims1980: 1 claim1981: 1 claim1982: 1 claim1983: 0 claims1984: 1 claim1985: 2 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 2 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 1 claim1997: 0 claims1998: 3 claims1999: 1 claim2000: 0 claims2001: 1 claim2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 1 claim2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 2 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 3 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims197919982023
19782026
26
paid claims since 1978
$160K
paid to owners
2
homes flooded more than once
$6K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Suffolk County.
Disasters

12 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Chelsea

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

  1. 2022Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$150K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
  2. 2018Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$62K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
  3. 2015Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding$207K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
  4. 2013Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding$51K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
  5. 2012Hurricane Sandy$9K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
  6. 2011Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$38K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
Show all 12
  1. 2010Severe Storms and Flooding16 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
  2. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding10 households applied for aid$23K aid approved
  3. 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$49K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
  4. 2004Flooding2 households applied for aid$326 aid approved
  5. 2003Snow$47K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
  6. 2003Snow$27K to the City of Chelsea for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ChelseaSuffolk County only

Suffolk County has had 30 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 Chelsea after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Chelsea archive →
Next door

Chelsea and its neighbors

Chelsea is 2nd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Revere: hazard risk BEverett: hazard risk BBoston: hazard risk ARevereEverettBostonChelsea
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
BostonAless damage than 92%river and rain flooding209
ChelseaB+less damage than 67%river and rain flooding26
EverettBless damage than 65%river and rain flooding9
RevereBless damage than 63%river and rain flooding2,147

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 Chelsea 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 ↗
When the tide surges
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Hurricane season
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
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 Chelsea

Is Chelsea at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chelsea has lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #184 of 283 in Massachusetts. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (70%) and coastal flooding (11%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Chelsea flood?

Flood insurance has paid 26 claims in Chelsea since 1978, $160K in all, or 1.8 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 64% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once.

Is Chelsea 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 Suffolk County, 53% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.5% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Chelsea?

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

By FEMA money that reached Chelsea, Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding (2015): $207K to the City of Chelsea for repairs.

Is Chelsea at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (70%), and Chelsea’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Chelsea.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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