Photo: Ted Kerwin · CC BY 2.0For strong wind, Sea Girt’s building-damage rate is in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sea Girt gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (44%), then strong wind (40%). Flood insurance has paid 79 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 Sea Girt 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
Strong wind
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 Sea Girt’s grade
River and rain flooding is 44% of the building damage FEMA expects in Sea Girt, and Sea Girt’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 72% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 40%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
C+ higher expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Sea Girt’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.6M a year in losses across Sea Girt: $1.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Sea Girt flood? Sometimes: 79 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Sea Girt, from FEMA’s records: 68.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 94% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Sandy48 claims · $1.7M
- The December Storm - nor’easter8 claims · $142K
- The Torrential rain2 claims · $15K
Sea Girt isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Monmouth County.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Sea Girt
Disasters that paid out in Sea Girt itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Sea Girt), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2020Tropical Storm Isaias$29K to the Borough of Sea Girt for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy169 households applied for aid$240K aid approved$2.1M to the Borough of Sea Girt for repairs48 flood claims paid for it, $1.7M
- 2011Hurricane Irene12 households applied for aid$10K aid approved$139K to the Borough of Sea Girt for repairs2 flood claims paid for it, $28K
- 2010Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$21K to the Borough of Sea Girt for repairs
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding1 households applied for aid$815 aid approved$50K to the Borough of Sea Girt for repairs
Monmouth County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe 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 Sea Girt after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Sea Girt archive →Sea Girt and its neighbors
Sea Girt is 3rd of the 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Lake | Bless damage than 58% | strong wind | 431 |
| Wall Township | B−less damage than 52% | strong wind | 54 |
| Sea Girt | C+more damage than 57% | river and rain flooding | 79 |
| Spring Lake Heights | C+more damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 33 |
| Manasquan | Dmore damage than 87% | coastal flooding | 2,019 |
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 Sea Girt 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.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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 Sea Girt
Is Sea Girt at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Sea Girt has higher expected damage per building than 57% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (44%) and strong wind (40%). 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 Sea Girt flood?
Flood insurance has paid 79 claims in Sea Girt since 1978, $2.6M in all, or 68.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 94% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Sandy (48).
Is Sea Girt 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 Monmouth County, 70% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 7.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Sea Girt?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Sea Girt’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 Sea Girt?
By FEMA money that reached Sea Girt, Hurricane Sandy (2012): 169 households applied for aid, $240K approved, and $2.1M to the Borough of Sea Girt for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Sandy: 48 paid, $1.7M.
Is Sea Girt at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (44%), and Sea Girt’s rate for it is lower than 72% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Sea Girt.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Sea Girt’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.