Natural hazards · Bethel

Bethel, CT natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Bethel comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 49 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Bethel?

Low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Bethel to be higher than in 37% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and hurricanes.

Inland flooding65%Hurricanes20%Everything else14%

By hazard

What Bethel faces

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

Inland flooding

65% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 49% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

20% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 8 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce 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 Bethel flood?

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

49paid claims since 1978

$739Kpaid to owners

5homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Floyd: 8 claims, $114K
Not a named storm: 4 claims, $6K
Hurricane Irene: 3 claims, $19K

Homes that flooded again and again

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

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Bethel 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 Bethel

Bethel and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Danburymostly inland floodingModerate

Brookfieldmostly inland floodingModerate

Newtownmostly inland floodingModerate

Reddingmostly inland floodingModerate

Bethelmostly inland floodingLow

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. Bethel covers 4 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Bethel’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Bethel. 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 Bethel total about $5.6M 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.