Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0FEMA puts Elizabeth’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 73% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Elizabeth gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns, #86 of 468 in New Jersey. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%), then earthquakes (11%). Flood insurance has paid 228 claims here since 1978.
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 Elizabeth’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Elizabeth 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
Earthquakes
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 Elizabeth’s grade
River and rain flooding is 73% of the building damage FEMA expects in Elizabeth, and Elizabeth’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 4%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #86 of 468 in New Jersey; lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Elizabeth’s residents live in 31 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical New Jersey town has higher expected damage than 56% of U.S. towns; within the state, Elizabeth has less expected damage per building than 82% of New Jersey towns.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Elizabeth has lower expected damage per building than 84% (#64 of 400). Because it is so big, its total expected yearly loss, $21.1M, is the 384th largest of those 400.
Does Elizabeth flood? Yes: 228 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Elizabeth, from FEMA’s records: 4.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 58% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Ida22 claims · $2.9M
- Hurricane Sandy12 claims · $3.7M
- Hurricane Irene12 claims · $219K
Elizabeth isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Union County.9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Elizabeth
Disasters that paid out in Elizabeth itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Elizabeth), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2021Remnants of Hurricane Ida2,813 households applied for aid$13.4M aid approved$12.3M to the City of Elizabeth for repairs22 flood claims paid for it, $2.9M
- 2016Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$425K to the City of Elizabeth for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy6,617 households applied for aid$1.2M aid approved$6.5M to the City of Elizabeth for repairs12 flood claims paid for it, $3.7M
- 2011Severe Storm$130K to the City of Elizabeth for repairs
- 2011Hurricane Irene1,365 households applied for aid$2.3M aid approved$732K to the City of Elizabeth for repairs12 flood claims paid for it, $219K
- 2010Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$227K to the City of Elizabeth for repairs
Show all 9
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding20 households applied for aid$22K aid approved
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding55 households applied for aid$96K aid approved$82K to the City of Elizabeth for repairs4 flood claims paid that year
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$70K to the City of Elizabeth for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
Union County has had 21 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.
Old photos of Elizabeth after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Elizabeth archive →Elizabeth and its neighbors
Elizabeth is 6th of the 9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roselle | Aless damage than 85% | river and rain flooding | 371 |
| Roselle Park | A−less damage than 84% | river and rain flooding | 60 |
| New York | A−less damage than 84% | river and rain flooding | 36,272 |
| Linden | A−less damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 299 |
| Hillside Township | B+less damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 199 |
| Elizabeth | B+less damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 228 |
| Union Township | B+less damage than 67% | river and rain flooding | 361 |
| Bayonne | B−less damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | 126 |
| Newark | B−less damage than 50% | river and rain flooding | 222 |
| Kean University | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
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 Elizabeth 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Elizabeth
Is Elizabeth at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Elizabeth has lower expected damage per building than 73% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #86 of 468 in New Jersey. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%) and earthquakes (11%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Elizabeth flood?
Flood insurance has paid 228 claims in Elizabeth since 1978, $7.9M in all, or 4.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 58% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 20 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Ida (22).
Is Elizabeth 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 Union County, 49% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Elizabeth?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Elizabeth’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 Elizabeth?
By FEMA money that reached Elizabeth, Remnants of Hurricane Ida (2021): 2,813 households applied for aid, $13.4M approved, and $12.3M to the City of Elizabeth for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Ida: 22 paid, $2.9M.
Is Elizabeth at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (73%), and Elizabeth’s rate for it is lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Elizabeth.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Elizabeth’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.