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Brighton VT 10-21-25Photo: Ascended Dreamer · CC BY 4.0
CHazard risk
Natural hazards in Brighton · FEMA

More hazard damage per building is expected in Brighton than in 66% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Brighton gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 91%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

more than 66%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C
in Vermont · higher than 66% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
91% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
6
of 26 declared for Essex County
By hazard

What Brighton 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

91%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 1 years in the area

Hurricanes

5%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Winter storms Strong wind Ice storms Lightning Tornadoes Hail Wildfire 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 12% of Brighton’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 Brighton’s grade

River and rain flooding is 91% of the building damage FEMA expects in Brighton, and Brighton’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 5% (higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Brighton sits
Brighton
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C higher expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding91%Hurricanes5%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $637K a year in losses across Brighton: $525K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Brighton’s 1,157 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Island Pond CDP (750 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 Brighton flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Brighton. 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

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

Insurance rates: Essex County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
2flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Brighton

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

  1. 2024Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$364K to the Town of Brighton for repairs
  2. 2024Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$139K to the Town of Brighton for repairs
  3. 2023Severe Storm and Flooding$28K to the Town of Brighton for repairs
  4. 2011Tropical Storm Irene$28K to the Town of Brighton for repairs
  5. 2011Severe Storms and Flooding$18K to the Town of Brighton for repairs
  6. 1999Tropical Storm Floyd$3K to the Town of Brighton for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BrightonEssex County only

Essex County has had 26 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Brighton archive →
Next door

Brighton and its neighbors

Brighton has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Charleston: not gradedNewark: not gradedMorgan: not gradedCharlestonNewarkMorganBrighton
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
BrightonCmore damage than 66%river and rain flooding0
Charleston—936 residents; we grade 1,000+
Newark—727 residents; we grade 1,000+
Morgan—827 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 Brighton 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 ↗
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 Brighton

Is Brighton at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Brighton has higher expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%) and hurricanes (5%). 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 Brighton 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 Essex County, 0.4% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Brighton?

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

By FEMA money that reached Brighton, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2024): $364K to the Town of Brighton for repairs.

Is Brighton at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (91%), and Brighton’s rate for it is higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Brighton.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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