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Fairfax, Vermont (17129795518)Photo: Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Fairfax · FEMA

FEMA puts Fairfax’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 60% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fairfax gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns, #44 of 71 in Vermont. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 1994.

River and rain flooding 92%Earthquakes 2%Ice storms 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 60%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#44 of 71 in Vermont
Hazard risk
B#44 of 71
in Vermont · lower than 60% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
92% of expected building damage
Flood claims
3
paid since 1994 · $83K
Disasters paid out here
9
of 27 declared for Franklin County
By hazard

What Fairfax 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

92%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Ice storms Hurricanes Strong wind Winter storms Tornadoes Lightning top 4% Landslides Hail Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves
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 Fairfax’s grade

River and rain flooding is 92% of the building damage FEMA expects in Fairfax, and Fairfax’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Fairfax sits
Fairfax
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B #44 of 71 in Vermont; lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding92%Everything else8%

The typical Vermont town has lower expected damage than 66% of U.S. towns; within the state, Fairfax has more expected damage per building than 61% of Vermont towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.5M a year in losses across Fairfax: $1.3M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Fairfax’s 5,014 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Fletcher town (1,346 residents) and Fairfax CDP (865 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 Fairfax flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 1994

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Fairfax, from FEMA’s records: 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 69% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1994: 1 claim1995: 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: 1 claim2010: 0 claims2011: 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 claims199420092011
19942026
3
paid claims since 1994
$83K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$28K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Franklin County.
Disasters

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Fairfax

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

  1. 2024Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding$80K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs
  2. 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides$8K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs
  3. 2019Severe Storm and Flooding$242K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs
  4. 2017Severe Storm and Flooding$17K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs
  5. 2011Tropical Storm Irene2 households applied for aid$554 aid approved
  6. 2011Severe Storms and Flooding5 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Show all 9
  1. 2010Severe Storm$5K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs
  2. 2004Severe Storms and Flooding$47K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs
  3. 2002Severe Winter Ice Storm$3K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in FairfaxFranklin County only

Franklin County has had 27 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Fairfax archive →
Next door

Fairfax and its neighbors

Fairfax is 6th of the 7 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Cambridge: hazard risk C+Westford: hazard risk BGeorgia: hazard risk A−Fletcher: hazard risk BFairfield: hazard risk B+Milton: hazard risk A−CambridgeWestfordGeorgiaFletcherFairfieldMiltonFairfax
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
MiltonA−less damage than 76%river and rain flooding23
GeorgiaA−less damage than 75%river and rain flooding5
FairfieldB+less damage than 72%river and rain flooding—
WestfordBless damage than 62%river and rain flooding—
FletcherBless damage than 60%river and rain flooding8
FairfaxBless damage than 60%river and rain flooding3
CambridgeC+more damage than 62%river and rain flooding14

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 Fairfax 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 Fairfax

Is Fairfax at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Fairfax has lower expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #44 of 71 in Vermont. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). 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 Fairfax flood?

Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Fairfax since 1994, $83K in all, or 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 69% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Fairfax 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 Franklin County, 0.7% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Fairfax?

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

By FEMA money that reached Fairfax, Severe Storm and Flooding (2019): $242K to the Town of Fairfax for repairs.

Is Fairfax at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (92%), and Fairfax’s rate for it is higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Fairfax.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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