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Bradford VT 1-24-2026Photo: Ascended Dreamer · CC BY-SA 4.0
B+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Bradford · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Bradford faces less hazard damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bradford gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns, #36 of 71 in Vermont. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 1983.

River and rain flooding 88%Hurricanes 5%Earthquakes 2%

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 66%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#36 of 71 in Vermont
Hazard risk
B+#36 of 71
in Vermont · lower than 66% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
88% of expected building damage
Flood claims
7
paid since 1983 · $53K
Disasters paid out here
2
of 31 declared for Orange County
By hazard

What Bradford 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

88%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 60% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Tornadoes Winter storms Lightning Wildfire Hail Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
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 Bradford’s grade

River and rain flooding is 88% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bradford, and Bradford’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 60% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Bradford sits
Bradford
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B+ #36 of 71 in Vermont; lower expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding88%Hurricanes5%Everything else7%

The typical Vermont town has lower expected damage than 66% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bradford has more expected damage per building than 50% of Vermont towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $902K a year in losses across Bradford: $737K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Bradford’s 2,790 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Bradford CDP (907 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 Bradford flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 1983

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bradford, from FEMA’s records: 5.8 per 1,000 homes, more than 63% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1983: 1 claim1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 1 claim1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 1 claim1991: 0 claims1992: 1 claim1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 1 claim2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 1 claim2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198319841986
19832026
Biggest named events
  • The Vermont/New York Flooding1 claim · $5K
7
paid claims since 1983
$53K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$8K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Orange County.
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bradford

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

  1. 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides6 households applied for aid$6K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
  2. 2011Tropical Storm Irene4 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BradfordOrange County only

Orange County has had 31 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Bradford archive →
Next door

Bradford and its neighbors

Bradford has the lowest expected damage per building of the 5 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Piermont: not gradedNewbury: hazard risk C+Corinth: hazard risk C+Fairlee: hazard risk CWest Fairlee: not gradedOrford: hazard risk DPiermontNewburyCorinthFairleeWest FairleeOrfordBradford
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
BradfordB+less damage than 66%river and rain flooding7
NewburyC+more damage than 62%river and rain flooding5
CorinthC+more damage than 63%river and rain flooding2
FairleeCmore damage than 74%river and rain flooding—
OrfordDmore damage than 90%river and rain flooding5
Piermont—868 residents; we grade 1,000+
West Fairlee—711 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 Bradford 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 Bradford

Is Bradford at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bradford has lower expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #36 of 71 in Vermont. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). 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 Bradford flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Bradford since 1983, $53K in all, or 5.8 per 1,000 homes, more than 63% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Vermont/New York Flooding (1).

Is Bradford 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 Orange County, 0.9% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Bradford?

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

By FEMA money that reached Bradford, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2023): 6 households applied for aid, $6K approved. By flood claims, Vermont/New York Flooding: 1 paid, $5K.

Is Bradford at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (88%), and Bradford’s rate for it is higher than 60% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bradford.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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