Photo: VT2CH · CC BY 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Cambridge
Cambridge isn’t graded for hazard risk: Cambridge has 173 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 26 claims here since 1982.
What Cambridge 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.
Does Cambridge flood? Sometimes: 26 flood claims since 1982
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Cambridge, from FEMA’s records.
- The Vermont/New York Flooding9 claims · $1.0M
- The December nor’easter3 claims · $28K
Cambridge isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Lamoille County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Cambridge
Disasters that paid out in Cambridge itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Cambridge), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides1 households applied for aid$5K aid approved
- 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides60 households applied for aid$554K aid approved12 flood claims paid that year
- 2011Tropical Storm Irene5 households applied for aid$10K aid approved
- 2011Severe Storms and Flooding6 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Lamoille County has had 34 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.
Old photos of Cambridge after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Cambridge archive →Get ready for what Cambridge 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 Cambridge
Does Cambridge flood?
Flood insurance has paid 26 claims in Cambridge since 1982, $1.3M in all. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Vermont/New York Flooding (9).
Is Cambridge 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 Lamoille County, 1.1% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Cambridge?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cambridge’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 Cambridge?
By FEMA money that reached Cambridge, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2023): 60 households applied for aid, $554K approved. By flood claims, Vermont/New York Flooding: 9 paid, $1.0M.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cambridge.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cambridge’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.