Photo: Cara Fealy Choate (w:Flickr user carabou) · CC BY 2.0For coastal flooding, Jonesport’s building-damage rate is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Jonesport gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is coastal flooding (34%), then hurricanes (34%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1980.
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 Jonesport 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
Hurricanes
River and rain flooding
Ice storms
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 Jonesport’s grade
Coastal flooding is 34% of the building damage FEMA expects in Jonesport, and Jonesport’s rate of coastal flooding damage is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 9%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
C+ higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Jonesport’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $450K a year in losses across Jonesport: $378K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Jonesport flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Jonesport, from FEMA’s records: 2.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 57% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Jonesport isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Washington County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Jonesport
Disasters that paid out in Jonesport itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Jonesport), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storms and Flooding27 households applied for aid$14K aid approved$204K to the Town of Jonesport for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2001Severe Winter Storms and Flooding$3K to the Town of Jonesport for repairs
- 2001Snow$3K to the Town of Jonesport for repairs
- 2000Severe Storms, Flooding, and Ice Jams$2K to the Town of Jonesport for repairs
Washington County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Jonesport after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Jonesport archive →Jonesport and its neighbors
Jonesport is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Machiasport | B−more damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Jonesport | C+more damage than 58% | coastal flooding | 2 |
| Addison | C+more damage than 59% | hurricanes | — |
| Jonesboro | — | 570 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Beals | — | 498 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Roque Bluffs | — | 369 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.
Get ready for what Jonesport faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Ice brings down trees and lines: plan for days without power.
- Run a generator outside, far from doors and windows.
- Keep sand or salt by the door.
- 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 Jonesport
Is Jonesport at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Jonesport has higher expected damage per building than 58% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is coastal flooding (34%) and hurricanes (34%). 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 Jonesport flood?
Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Jonesport since 1980, $3K in all, or 2.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 57% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Jonesport 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 Washington County, 14% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Jonesport?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Jonesport’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 Jonesport?
By FEMA money that reached Jonesport, Severe Storms and Flooding (2024): 27 households applied for aid, $14K approved, and $204K to the Town of Jonesport for repairs.
Is Jonesport at risk from coastal flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (34%), and Jonesport’s rate for it is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Jonesport.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Jonesport’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.