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Main Street, Chester, NJ - clockPhoto: Zeete · CC BY-SA 4.0
A+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Chester · FEMA

FEMA puts Chester’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chester gets an A+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%), then earthquakes (12%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 72%Earthquakes 12%Hurricanes 9%

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

less than 98%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A+
in New Jersey · lower than 98% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
72% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
11
of 25 declared for Morris County
By hazard

What Chester 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

72%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

12%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 68% of U.S. census tracts

Hurricanes

9%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 67% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 10 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Strong wind Winter storms Lightning Hail Wildfire Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 10% of Chester’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Chester’s grade

River and rain flooding is 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Chester, and Chester’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 12% (higher than 68% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Chester sits
Chester
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A+ lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding72%Earthquakes12%Hurricanes9%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $488K a year in losses across Chester: $371K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Chester’s 1,681 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. 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 Chester flood? No paid flood claims on record

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

of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Morris County.
Disasters

11 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Chester

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

  1. 2021Remnants of Hurricane Ida22 households applied for aid$19K aid approved
  2. 2021Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$33K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
  3. 2020Tropical Storm Isaias$22K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
  4. 2018Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$36K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
  5. 2016Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$17K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
  6. 2012Hurricane Sandy167 households applied for aid$31K aid approved$72K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
Show all 11
  1. 2011Severe Storm$34K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
  2. 2011Hurricane Irene39 households applied for aid$132K aid approved$20K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
  3. 2010Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$6K to the Borough of Chester for repairs
  4. 2010Severe Storms and Flooding4 households applied for aid$9K aid approved
  5. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding1 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ChesterMorris County only

Morris County has had 25 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Chester archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Chester 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 ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
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 Chester

Is Chester at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chester has lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%) and earthquakes (12%). 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 Chester 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 Morris County, 1.4% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Chester?

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

By FEMA money that reached Chester, Hurricane Irene (2011): 39 households applied for aid, $132K approved, and $20K to the Borough of Chester for repairs.

Is Chester at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Chester’s rate for it is lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Chester.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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