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Loudon Congregational Church 0720Photo: Ken Gallager · CC BY-SA 4.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Loudon · FEMA

FEMA puts Loudon’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 78% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Loudon gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns, #102 of 126 in New Hampshire. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 87%Hurricanes 7%Earthquakes 2%

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

more than 78%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#102 of 126 in New Hampshire
Hazard risk
C−#102 of 126
in New Hampshire · higher than 78% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
87% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
10
of 24 declared for Merrimack County
By hazard

What Loudon 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

87%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 87% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

7%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 10 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Ice storms Tornadoes Lightning top 1% Strong wind Winter storms Hail Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Loudon’s grade

River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Loudon, and Loudon’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 87% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 2%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Loudon sits
Loudon
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− #102 of 126 in New Hampshire; higher expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding87%Hurricanes7%Everything else6%

The typical New Hampshire town has higher expected damage than 58% of U.S. towns; within the state, Loudon has more expected damage per building than 81% of New Hampshire towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.9M a year in losses across Loudon: $1.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Loudon’s 5,576 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Loudon CDP (711 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 Loudon flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Loudon. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Merrimack County.
Disasters

10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Loudon

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

  1. 2013Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$14K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  2. 2012Hurricane Sandy$3K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  3. 2011Tropical Storm Irene$3K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  4. 2010Severe Winter Storm$8K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  5. 2007Severe Storms and Flooding7 households applied for aid$8K aid approved$20K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  6. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding16 households applied for aid$18K aid approved$693K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
Show all 10
  1. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding1 households applied for aid$26K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  2. 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$11K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  3. 2003Snow$12K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
  4. 2003Snow$9K to the Town of Loudon for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in LoudonMerrimack County only

Merrimack County has had 24 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Loudon archive →
Next door

Loudon and its neighbors

Loudon is 5th of the 5 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Canterbury: hazard risk B−Chichester: hazard risk B−Gilmanton: hazard risk B−Concord: hazard risk B−CanterburyChichesterGilmantonConcordLoudon
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
ChichesterB−less damage than 52%river and rain flooding1
CanterburyB−less damage than 51%river and rain flooding—
ConcordB−less damage than 51%river and rain flooding24
GilmantonB−more damage than 54%river and rain flooding1
LoudonC−more damage than 78%river and rain flooding0

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 Loudon 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 ↗
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 Loudon

Is Loudon at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Loudon has higher expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #102 of 126 in New Hampshire. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%) and hurricanes (7%). 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.

Is Loudon 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 Merrimack County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Loudon?

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

By FEMA money that reached Loudon, Severe Storms and Flooding (2006): 16 households applied for aid, $18K approved, and $693K to the Town of Loudon for repairs.

Is Loudon at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Loudon’s rate for it is higher than 87% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Loudon.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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