Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Boswell as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Boswell gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Boswell 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
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 Boswell’s grade
River and rain flooding is 94% of the building damage FEMA expects in Boswell, and Boswell’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts.
B− higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Boswell’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $420K a year in losses across Boswell: $389K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Boswell flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Boswell. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Boswell isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Somerset County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Boswell
Disasters that paid out in Boswell itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Boswell), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2004Tropical Depression Ivan2 households applied for aid$15K aid approved
Somerset County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Boswell after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Boswell archive →Get ready for what Boswell 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.
- 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 Boswell
Is Boswell at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Boswell has higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). 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 Boswell 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 Somerset County, 16% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Boswell?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Boswell’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 Boswell?
By FEMA money that reached Boswell, Tropical Depression Ivan (2004): 2 households applied for aid, $15K approved.
Is Boswell at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (94%), and Boswell’s rate for it is higher than 75% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Boswell.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Boswell’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.