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Dorset Village, VermontPhoto: Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0
B+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Dorset · FEMA

FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Dorset than in 67% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Dorset gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). Flood insurance has paid 6 claims here since 1979.

River and rain flooding 88%Hurricanes 6%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 67%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B+
in Vermont · lower than 67% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
88% of expected building damage
Flood claims
6
paid since 1979 · $129K
Disasters paid out here
7
of 18 declared for Bennington County

What stands out about Dorset’s natural hazards

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

Lower expected damage than 67% 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 Dorset 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
About average · higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 17 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Strong wind Ice storms Lightning top 4% Winter storms Landslides top 4% Wildfire Hail Cold waves Heat waves Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 23% of Dorset’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 Dorset’s grade

River and rain flooding is 88% of the building damage FEMA expects in Dorset, and Dorset’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 6% (higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Dorset sits
Dorset
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B+ lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding88%Hurricanes6%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Dorset: $894K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Dorset’s 2,133 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Rupert town (698 residents) and Dorset CDP (360 residents) and East Dorset CDP (296 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 Dorset flood? Rarely: 6 flood claims since 1979

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Dorset, from FEMA’s records: 4.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1979: 1 claim1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 1 claim1997: 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: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 1 claim2020: 0 claims2021: 1 claim2022: 0 claims2023: 2 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims197919962023
19792026
Biggest named events
  • The Vermont/New York Flooding2 claims · $52K
6
paid claims since 1979
$129K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$21K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

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

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Dorset

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

  1. 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$28K to the Town of Dorset for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
  2. 2021Severe Storm and Flooding$8K to the Town of Dorset for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  3. 2019Severe Storms and Flooding$72K to the Town of Dorset for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  4. 2011Tropical Storm Irene10 households applied for aid$7K aid approved$13K to the Town of Dorset for repairs
  5. 2007Severe Storms and Flooding$5K to the Town of Dorset for repairs
  6. 2001Snow$3K to the Town of Dorset for repairs
Show all 7
  1. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$6K to the Town of Dorset for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in DorsetBennington County only

Bennington County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Dorset archive →
Next door

Dorset and its neighbors

Dorset is 2nd of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Danby: hazard risk B−Mount Tabor: not gradedManchester: hazard risk B+Rupert: not gradedPeru: not gradedWinhall: hazard risk A−DanbyMount TaborManchesterRupertPeruWinhallDorset
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
WinhallA−less damage than 84%river and rain flooding5
DorsetB+less damage than 67%river and rain flooding6
ManchesterB+less damage than 66%river and rain flooding29
DanbyB−more damage than 52%river and rain flooding1
Mount Tabor—304 residents; we grade 1,000+
Rupert—676 residents; we grade 1,000+
Peru—434 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 Dorset 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 Dorset

Is Dorset at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Dorset has lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%) and hurricanes (6%). 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 Dorset flood?

Flood insurance has paid 6 claims in Dorset since 1979, $129K in all, or 4.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Vermont/New York Flooding (2).

Is Dorset 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 Bennington County, 28% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.5% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Dorset?

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

By FEMA money that reached Dorset, Severe Storms and Flooding (2019): $72K to the Town of Dorset for repairs. By flood claims, Vermont/New York Flooding: 2 paid, $52K.

Is Dorset at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (88%), and Dorset’s rate for it is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Dorset.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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