Natural hazards · Bridgewater

Bridgewater, MA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Bridgewater comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 20 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Bridgewater?

Low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Bridgewater to be higher than in 26% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding71%Hurricanes10%Earthquakes7%Everything else12%

By hazard

What Bridgewater faces

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

Inland flooding

71% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 44% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

10% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

Earthquakes

7% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 62% of U.S. places

Lower here

Coastal floodingTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Bridgewater flood?

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

20paid claims since 1978

$94Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

March 2010 Nor'easter: 9 claims, $32K
Not a named storm: 1 claim, $993

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Plymouth County.

Disasters that hit Bridgewater

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Plymouth County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Bridgewater itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into BridgewaterDeclared for Plymouth County only

Plymouth County has had 26 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and severe storms.

Around Bridgewater

Bridgewater and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

East Bridgewatermostly inland floodingLow

Raynhammostly inland floodingLow

Halifaxmostly inland floodingLow

Middleboroughmostly inland floodingLow

Bridgewater Townmostly inland floodingLow

West Bridgewatermostly inland floodingVery low

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. Bridgewater covers 6 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Bridgewater’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Bridgewater. 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 Bridgewater total about $6.0M 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.