Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0For coastal flooding, Lubec’s building-damage rate is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lubec gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (40%), then river and rain flooding (28%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2016.
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 stands out about Lubec’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Lubec faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
River and rain flooding
Coastal 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 Lubec’s grade
Hurricanes are 40% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lubec, and Lubec’s rate of hurricanes damage is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 17%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
B lower expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Lubec’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $349K a year in losses across Lubec: $284K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lubec flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 2016
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lubec, from FEMA’s records: 1.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 66% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Lubec 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.9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Lubec
Disasters that paid out in Lubec itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Lubec), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storms and Flooding26 households applied for aid$34K aid approved$436K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
- 2023Severe Storm and Flooding$22K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
- 2013Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding$7K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$30K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
- 2005Severe Storms, Flooding, Snow Melt, and Ice Jams$74K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
- 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$5K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
Show all 9
- 2001Severe Winter Storms and Flooding$25K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
- 2001Snow$3K to the Town of Lubec for repairs
- 2000Severe Storms, Flooding, and Ice Jams$1K to the Town of Lubec 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 Lubec after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lubec archive →Lubec and its neighbors
Lubec has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
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 Lubec faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Lubec
Is Lubec at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lubec has lower expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (40%) and river and rain flooding (28%). 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 Lubec flood?
Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Lubec since 2016, $23K in all, or 1.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 66% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Lubec 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 Lubec?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lubec’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 Lubec?
By FEMA money that reached Lubec, Severe Storms and Flooding (2024): 26 households applied for aid, $34K approved, and $436K to the Town of Lubec for repairs.
Is Lubec at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (40%), and Lubec’s rate for it is higher than 88% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lubec.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lubec’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.