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Looking North on Standish Street, South Duxbury, MAPhoto: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in South Duxbury · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in South Duxbury

South Duxbury isn’t graded for hazard risk: South Duxbury is a Census area inside a town, graded with the town. Flood insurance has paid 91 claims here since 1978.

Flood claims
91
paid since 1978 · $1.3M
Disasters paid out here
0
of 25 declared for Plymouth County
By hazard

What South Duxbury faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

Coastal flooding

45%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts

River and rain flooding

41%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 90% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

9%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 79% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Strong wind Ice storms Wildfire Lightning Hail Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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.
Flood insurance claims

Does South Duxbury flood? Sometimes: 91 flood claims since 1978

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in South Duxbury, from FEMA’s records.

Paid flood claims, by year
1978: 9 claims1979: 7 claims1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 13 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 1 claim1991: 21 claims1992: 10 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 1 claim1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 2 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 1 claim2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 2 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 2 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 3 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 1 claim2014: 0 claims2015: 1 claim2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 14 claims2019: 2 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 1 claim2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198719912018
19782026
Biggest named events
  • The “Halloween” storm21 claims · $487K
  • The December Storm - nor’easter10 claims · $53K
91
paid claims since 1978
$1.3M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$14K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Plymouth County.
Disasters

The storms South Duxbury remembers

None of the 25 disasters declared for Plymouth County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching South Duxbury itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 199121 flood claims paidThe year of Coastal Storm, declared for Plymouth County
  2. 201814 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storm and Flooding, declared for Plymouth County
  3. 198713 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in South DuxburyPlymouth County only

Plymouth County has had 25 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the South Duxbury archive →
Next door

South Duxbury and its neighbors

How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Duxbury: hazard risk BKingston: hazard risk ADuxburyKingstonSouth Duxbury
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
KingstonAless damage than 90%river and rain flooding11
DuxburyBless damage than 64%river and rain flooding396

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 South Duxbury 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 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 ↗
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 ↗
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 ↗
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 South Duxbury

Does South Duxbury flood?

Flood insurance has paid 91 claims in South Duxbury since 1978, $1.3M in all. The most claims came from The "Halloween" Storm (21).

Is South Duxbury 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 Plymouth County, 52% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 4.3% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in South Duxbury?

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

By flood claims, The "Halloween" Storm: 21 paid, $487K.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in South Duxbury.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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