Natural hazards · Berlin

Berlin, CT natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Berlin comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 50 claims here since 1978.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Berlin?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Berlin to be higher than in 62% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding84%Everything else16%

By hazard

What Berlin faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

84% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Berlin flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Berlin, from FEMA’s records.

50paid claims since 1978

$416Kpaid to owners

5homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Not a named storm: 10 claims, $59K
Hurricane Ida: 1 claim, $20K
Hurricane Floyd: 1 claim, $10K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Berlin isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: .

Around Berlin

Berlin and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Middletownmostly inland floodingHigh

Meridenmostly inland floodingHigh

Cromwellmostly inland floodingHigh

Berlinmostly inland floodingHigh

Southingtonmostly inland floodingModerate

Rocky Hillmostly inland floodingModerate

Newingtonmostly inland floodingModerate

New Britainmostly inland floodingModerate

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Berlin covers 4 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Berlin’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Berlin. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across Berlin total about $8.8M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); 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. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.