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A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Frenchville · FEMA

Less hazard damage per building is expected in Frenchville than in 77% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Frenchville gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%), then hurricanes (14%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1991.

River and rain flooding 74%Hurricanes 14%Earthquakes 6%

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 77%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A−
in Maine · lower than 77% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
74% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 1991 · $20K
Disasters paid out here
8
of 20 declared for Aroostook County
By hazard

What Frenchville 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

74%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

14%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 19 years in the area

Earthquakes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 61% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Winter storms top 0% Ice storms Strong wind Hail Tornadoes Lightning Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 45% of Frenchville’s expected losses. Cold 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 Frenchville’s grade

River and rain flooding is 74% of the building damage FEMA expects in Frenchville, and Frenchville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts. Winter storms add 3%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Frenchville sits
Frenchville
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding74%Hurricanes14%Earthquakes6%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $619K a year in losses across Frenchville: $282K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Frenchville’s 1,052 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with St. Agatha town (730 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 Frenchville flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1991

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Frenchville, from FEMA’s records: 2.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 61% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1991: 1 claim1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 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 claims1991
19912026
Biggest named events
  • The “Halloween” storm1 claim · $20K
1
paid claims since 1991
$20K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$20K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Aroostook County.
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Frenchville

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

  1. 2008Severe Storms and Flooding8 households applied for aid$7K aid approved$40K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
  2. 2005Snow$11K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
  3. 2005Snow$10K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
  4. 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$5K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
  5. 2003Snow$5K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
  6. 2003Snow$3K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
Show all 8
  1. 2003Snow$5K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
  2. 2001Snow$3K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in FrenchvilleAroostook County only

Aroostook County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Frenchville archive →
Next door

Frenchville and its neighbors

Frenchville is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

St. Agatha: not gradedFort Kent: hazard risk B−Madawaska: hazard risk ASt. AgathaFort KentMadawaskaFrenchville
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
MadawaskaAless damage than 88%river and rain flooding2
FrenchvilleA−less damage than 77%river and rain flooding1
Fort KentB−more damage than 54%river and rain flooding95
St. Agatha—842 residents; we grade 1,000+

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 Frenchville 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 ↗
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 Frenchville

Is Frenchville at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Frenchville has lower expected damage per building than 77% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (74%) and hurricanes (14%). 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 Frenchville flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Frenchville since 1991, $20K in all, or 2.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 61% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from The "Halloween" Storm (1).

Is Frenchville 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 Aroostook County, 0.3% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Frenchville?

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

By FEMA money that reached Frenchville, Severe Storms and Flooding (2008): 8 households applied for aid, $7K approved, and $40K to the Town of Frenchville for repairs. By flood claims, The "Halloween" Storm: 1 paid, $20K.

Is Frenchville at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (74%), and Frenchville’s rate for it is lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Frenchville.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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