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CHazard risk
Natural hazards in Springfield · FEMA

FEMA puts Springfield’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 73% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Springfield gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 92%Hurricanes 4%Ice storms 1%

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 73%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C
in New Hampshire · higher than 73% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
92% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
7
of 27 declared for Sullivan County
By hazard

What Springfield 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

92%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Ice storms Earthquakes Tornadoes Strong wind Winter storms Wildfire Landslides top 4% Lightning Hail Cold waves Heat waves
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 Springfield’s grade

River and rain flooding is 92% of the building damage FEMA expects in Springfield, and Springfield’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Springfield sits
Springfield
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C higher expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding92%Hurricanes4%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $445K a year in losses across Springfield: $384K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Springfield’s 1,259 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Grantham town (3,404 residents) and Croydon town (801 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 Springfield flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Springfield. 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

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

Insurance rates: Sullivan County.
Disasters

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Springfield

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

  1. 2011Tropical Storm Irene$11K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
  2. 2008Severe Winter Storm$19K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
  3. 2007Severe Storms and Flooding$61K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
  4. 2005Record Snow$3K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
  5. 2005Record Snow$2K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
  6. 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$3K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
Show all 7
  1. 2003Snow$3K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in SpringfieldSullivan County only

Sullivan County has had 27 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Springfield archive →
Next door

Springfield and its neighbors

Springfield is 4th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Grantham: hazard risk CWilmot: hazard risk DGrafton: hazard risk DNew London: hazard risk A−Sunapee: hazard risk C+Croydon: not gradedGranthamWilmotGraftonNew LondonSunapeeCroydonSpringfield
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
New LondonA−less damage than 85%river and rain flooding1
SunapeeC+more damage than 59%river and rain flooding4
GranthamCmore damage than 73%river and rain flooding4
SpringfieldCmore damage than 73%river and rain flooding0
WilmotDmore damage than 86%river and rain flooding—
GraftonDmore damage than 88%river and rain flooding—
Croydon—798 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 Springfield 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 ↗
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 Springfield

Is Springfield at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Springfield has higher expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). 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 Springfield 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 Sullivan County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Springfield?

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

By FEMA money that reached Springfield, Severe Storms and Flooding (2007): $61K to the Town of Springfield for repairs.

Is Springfield at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (92%), and Springfield’s rate for it is higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Springfield.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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