Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Johnson

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
Johnson State College Library and Learning CenterPhoto: GearedBull · CC BY-SA 3.0
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Johnson · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Johnson as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Johnson gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). Flood insurance has paid 38 claims here since 1980.

River and rain flooding 90%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 55%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 55% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
90% of expected building damage
Flood claims
38
paid since 1980 · $2.4M
Flooded more than once
4
properties · 2 “severe repetitive loss”
Disasters paid out here
7
of 34 declared for Lamoille County

What stands out about Johnson’s natural hazards

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

FEMA-funded flood-proofing17 flood-prone properties bought out and cleared; 1 building floodproofed with FEMA grants.Remembers 202315 flood claims were paid for 2023 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Johnson 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

90%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Earthquakes Strong wind Winter storms top 5% Ice storms Lightning top 5% Tornadoes 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 Johnson’s grade

River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Johnson, and Johnson’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts. Winter storms add 1%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Johnson sits
Johnson
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding90%Hurricanes4%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $426K a year in losses across Johnson: $348K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides in 2023, FEMA took 184 aid registrations from Johnson addresses (the town has 837 homes).
Shared tract.All of Johnson’s 1,332 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Johnson town (3,491 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 Johnson flood? Sometimes: 38 flood claims since 1980

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Johnson, from FEMA’s records: 45.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 92% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1980: 2 claims1981: 1 claim1982: 1 claim1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 5 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 2 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: 8 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 2 claims2019: 2 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 15 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims199520112023
19802026
Biggest named events
  • The Vermont/New York Flooding14 claims · $1.8M
  • Hurricane Irene1 claim · $6K
  • The December nor’easter1 claim · $84K
38
paid claims since 1980
$2.4M
paid to owners
4
homes flooded more than once
$63K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (2)Flooded 2+ times
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Johnson 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.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
17flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
1building floodproofed
Disasters

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Johnson

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

  1. 2024Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides6 households applied for aid$9K aid approved$21K to the Village of Johnson for repairs
  2. 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides184 households applied for aid$1.1M aid approved$1.1M to the Village of Johnson for repairs15 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2018Severe Storm and Flooding$3K to the Village of Johnson for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
  4. 2011Tropical Storm Irene4 households applied for aid$3K aid approved$13K to the Village of Johnson for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $6K
  5. 2011Severe Storms and Flooding8 households applied for aid$6K aid approved$31K to the Village of Johnson for repairs
  6. 2007Severe Storms and Flooding$3K to the Village of Johnson for repairs
Show all 7
  1. 2002Severe Storms and Flooding$4K to the Village of Johnson for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in JohnsonLamoille County only

Lamoille County has had 34 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Johnson archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Johnson 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 Johnson

Is Johnson at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Johnson has lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). 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 Johnson flood?

Flood insurance has paid 38 claims in Johnson since 1980, $2.4M in all, or 45.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 92% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Vermont/New York Flooding (14).

Is Johnson 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 Johnson?

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

By FEMA money that reached Johnson, Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides (2023): 184 households applied for aid, $1.1M approved, and $1.1M to the Village of Johnson for repairs. By flood claims, Vermont/New York Flooding: 14 paid, $1.8M.

Is Johnson at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Johnson’s rate for it is higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Johnson.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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