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Civil War Memorial, The Park, Rochester, VermontPhoto: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0
CHazard risk
Natural hazards in Rochester · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Rochester faces more hazard damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rochester gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (92%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 1998.

River and rain flooding 92%Hurricanes 3%Earthquakes 1%

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

more than 69%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C
in Vermont · higher than 69% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
92% of expected building damage
Flood claims
7
paid since 1998 · $443K
Disasters paid out here
8
of 24 declared for Windsor County

What stands out about Rochester’s natural hazards

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

Landslides: the top 2% of U.S. tractsFEMA’s building-damage rate for landslides here ranks in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts; it is 0.4% of the damage it expects.Moved out of harm’s way2 flood-prone properties bought out and cleared with FEMA grants.
By hazard

What Rochester 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
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Earthquakes Strong wind Tornadoes Ice storms Winter storms Landslides top 2% Wildfire Lightning Hail Cold waves Heat waves Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingTsunamisVolcanic 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 Rochester’s grade

River and rain flooding is 92% of the building damage FEMA expects in Rochester, and Rochester’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Rochester sits
Rochester
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Rochester’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%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $545K a year in losses across Rochester: $466K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Rochester’s 1,099 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Bethel town (1,942 residents) and Bethel CDP (670 residents) and Rochester CDP (321 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 Rochester flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 1998

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Rochester, from FEMA’s records: 7.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1998: 1 claim1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 6 claims2012: 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 claims19982011
19982026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irene6 claims · $440K
7
paid claims since 1998
$443K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$63K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Windsor County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
2flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Rochester

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

  1. 2023Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides7 households applied for aid$23K aid approved$11K to the Town of Rochester for repairs
  2. 2019Severe Storms and Flooding$328K to the Town of Rochester for repairs
  3. 2014Severe Winter Storm$50K to the Town of Rochester for repairs
  4. 2013Severe Storms and Flooding$28K to the Town of Rochester for repairs
  5. 2011Tropical Storm Irene119 households applied for aid$363K aid approved$2.7M to the Town of Rochester for repairs6 flood claims paid for it, $440K
  6. 2008Severe Storms and Flooding$317K to the Town of Rochester for repairs
Show all 8
  1. 2001Snow$3K to the Town of Rochester for repairs
  2. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$16K to the Town of Rochester for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in RochesterWindsor County only

Windsor County has had 24 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Rochester archive →
Next door

Rochester and its neighbors

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

Pittsfield: not gradedHancock: not gradedChittenden: hazard risk BBraintree: hazard risk C+Bethel: hazard risk CGoshen: not gradedGranville: not gradedStockbridge: not gradedPittsfieldHancockChittendenBraintreeBethelGoshenGranvilleStockbridgeRochester
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
ChittendenBless damage than 55%river and rain flooding1
BraintreeC+more damage than 59%river and rain flooding2
BethelCmore damage than 69%river and rain flooding16
RochesterCmore damage than 69%river and rain flooding7
Pittsfield—391 residents; we grade 1,000+
Hancock—435 residents; we grade 1,000+
Goshen—142 residents; we grade 1,000+
Granville—414 residents; we grade 1,000+
Stockbridge—791 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 Rochester 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 Rochester

Is Rochester at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rochester has higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. 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 Rochester flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Rochester since 1998, $443K in all, or 7.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Irene (6).

Is Rochester 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 Windsor County, 28% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Rochester?

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

By FEMA money that reached Rochester, Tropical Storm Irene (2011): 119 households applied for aid, $363K approved, and $2.7M to the Town of Rochester for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irene: 6 paid, $440K.

Is Rochester at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (92%), and Rochester’s rate for it is higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Rochester.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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