Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Clarendon

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Kingsley Grist Mill Historic DistrictKingsley Grist Mill Historic District · Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0
A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Clarendon · FEMA

FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Clarendon than in 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clarendon gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2011.

River and rain flooding 87%Hurricanes 4%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 80%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A−
in Vermont · lower than 80% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
87% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 2011 · $4K
Disasters paid out here
5
of 19 declared for Rutland County

What stands out about Clarendon’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Lower expected damage than 80% of U.S. townsFEMA’s model of yearly storm and flood damage per dollar of building.Moved out of harm’s way1 flood-prone property bought out and cleared with FEMA grants.
By hazard

What Clarendon 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

87%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 54% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Earthquakes Strong wind Tornadoes Ice storms 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 Clarendon’s grade

River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Clarendon, and Clarendon’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 54% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Clarendon sits
Clarendon
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− lower expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding87%Hurricanes4%Everything else8%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $777K a year in losses across Clarendon: $607K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Clarendon’s 2,412 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. 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 Clarendon flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2011

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Clarendon, from FEMA’s records: 0.9 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 80% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims2011
20112026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irene1 claim · $4K
1
paid claims since 2011
$4K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$4K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Rutland County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1flood-prone property bought out and cleared
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Clarendon

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

  1. 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$6K to the Town of Clarendon for repairs
  2. 2019Severe Storms and Flooding$21K to the Town of Clarendon for repairs
  3. 2011Tropical Storm Irene1 households applied for aid$788 aid approved$3K to the Town of Clarendon for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $4K
  4. 2001Snow$7K to the Town of Clarendon for repairs
  5. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$33K to the Town of Clarendon for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ClarendonRutland County only

Rutland County has had 19 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Clarendon archive →
Next door

Clarendon and its neighbors

Clarendon is 3rd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Wallingford: hazard risk B−Rutland: hazard risk A+Ira: not gradedShrewsbury: hazard risk ATinmouth: not gradedWallingfordRutlandIraShrewsburyTinmouthClarendon
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
RutlandA+less damage than 96%river and rain flooding7
ShrewsburyAless damage than 86%river and rain flooding21
ClarendonA−less damage than 80%river and rain flooding1
WallingfordB−less damage than 50%river and rain flooding27
Ira—381 residents; we grade 1,000+
Tinmouth—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 Clarendon 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 Clarendon

Is Clarendon at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Clarendon has lower expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). 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 Clarendon flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Clarendon since 2011, $4K in all, or 0.9 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 80% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Irene (1).

Is Clarendon 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 Rutland County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Clarendon?

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

By FEMA money that reached Clarendon, Severe Storms and Flooding (2000): $33K to the Town of Clarendon for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irene: 1 paid, $4K.

Is Clarendon at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Clarendon’s rate for it is lower than 54% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Clarendon.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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