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Natural hazards · Columbia

Columbia, ME natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Columbia comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Columbia?

54
Moderate
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Columbia to be higher than in 54% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and inland flooding.

Hurricanes29%Inland flooding23%Coastal flooding20%Ice storms8%Cold waves8%Everything else11%
By hazard

What Columbia faces

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

Hurricanes

29% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 9 years in the area

Inland flooding

23% of expected damage
Well below average · higher than 10% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Coastal flooding

20% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Ice storms

8% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Cold waves

8% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 44% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong 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 Columbia flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Columbia.

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Columbia isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Washington County.
Disasters that hit Columbia

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Columbia itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the Town of Columbia.

Brought FEMA money into ColumbiaDeclared for Washington County only
2024

Severe Storms and Flooding

3 households applied for aid $5K aid approved
2010

Severe Storms and Flooding

$11K to the Town of Columbia for repairs
2009

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Landslides

$10K to the Town of Columbia for repairs
2007

Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding

$2K to the Town of Columbia for repairs
2005

Severe Storms, Flooding, Snow Melt, and Ice Jams

$8K to the Town of Columbia for repairs
Washington County has had 21 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and winter storms.
Around Columbia

Columbia and the towns around it

Columbia Falls: Moderate, mostly hurricanesCherryfield: Moderate, mostly inland floodingHarrington: Moderate, mostly hurricanesJonesboro: Moderate, mostly hurricanesAddison: Moderate, mostly hurricanesSteuben: Moderate, mostly inland floodingMilbridge: no dataDeblois: Moderate, mostly inland floodingColumbia: Moderate, mostly hurricanes ColumbiaColumbia FallsCherryfieldHarrington
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Columbiamostly hurricanesModerate
Columbia Fallsmostly hurricanesModerate
Harringtonmostly hurricanesModerate
Cherryfieldmostly 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. Columbia is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Columbia’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Columbia. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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