Photo: Ascended Dreamer · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Lancaster than in 91% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lancaster gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns, #123 of 126 in New Hampshire. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). Flood insurance has paid 11 claims here since 1981.
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 Lancaster 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
Hurricanes
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 Lancaster’s grade
River and rain flooding is 91% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lancaster, and Lancaster’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 1%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
D #123 of 126 in New Hampshire; higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Lancaster’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical New Hampshire town has higher expected damage than 58% of U.S. towns; within the state, Lancaster has more expected damage per building than 98% of New Hampshire towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $7.5M a year in losses across Lancaster: $2.3M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lancaster flood? Sometimes: 11 flood claims since 1981
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lancaster, from FEMA’s records: 7.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Lancaster isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Coos County.8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Lancaster
Disasters that paid out in Lancaster itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Lancaster), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storm and Flooding$1.2M to the Town of Lancaster for repairs
- 2011Tropical Storm Irene$24K to the Town of Lancaster for repairs
- 2011Severe Storms and Flooding$14K to the Town of Lancaster for repairs
- 2008Severe Storms and Flooding$22K to the Town of Lancaster for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Flooding$36K to the Town of Lancaster for repairs
- 2005Record Snow$12K to the Town of Lancaster for repairs3 flood claims paid that year
Show all 8
- 2003Snow$8K to the Town of Lancaster for repairs
- 2001Snow$6K to the Town of Lancaster for repairs
Coos County has had 22 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Lancaster after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lancaster archive →Lancaster and its neighbors
Lancaster is 3rd of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lunenburg | B−more damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Jefferson | Dmore damage than 85% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Lancaster | Dmore damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | 11 |
| Northumberland | Dmore damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| Guildhall | — | 371 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Dalton | — | 916 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 Lancaster faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Lancaster
Is Lancaster at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lancaster has higher expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #123 of 126 in New Hampshire. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%) and hurricanes (6%). 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 Lancaster flood?
Flood insurance has paid 11 claims in Lancaster since 1981, $102K in all, or 7.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Lancaster 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 Coos County, 11% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Lancaster?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lancaster’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 Lancaster?
By FEMA money that reached Lancaster, Severe Storm and Flooding (2024): $1.2M to the Town of Lancaster for repairs.
Is Lancaster at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (91%), and Lancaster’s rate for it is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lancaster.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lancaster’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.