Natural hazards · West Burke

West Burke, VT natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in West Burke comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is West Burke?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in West Burke to be higher than in 42% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding73%Cold waves10%Hurricanes7%Everything else10%

By hazard

What West Burke faces

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

Inland flooding

73% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 67% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Cold waves

10% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 41% of U.S. places

Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

7% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 78% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 22 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningAvalanches

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtTsunamisVolcanic 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 West Burke flood?

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

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Caledonia County.

Disasters that hit West Burke

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in West Burke itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the Village of West Burke.

Brought FEMA money into West BurkeDeclared for Caledonia County only

2024

Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides

14 households applied for aid $127K aid approved

2023

Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides

13 households applied for aid $24K aid approved

2011

Tropical Storm Irene

6 households applied for aid $4K aid approved

2011

Severe Storms and Flooding

1 household applied for aid

Caledonia County has had 27 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

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. West Burke 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 West Burke’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Village of West Burke. 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.