Natural disaster risk in Northwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut
Connecticut · population 112,433 · FIPS 09160
Overall: relatively low risk
Northwest Hills Planning Region has a composite risk score of 79.6 out of 100 — higher than 79% of US counties. It ranks 8 of 9 in Connecticut (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are inland (riverine) flooding, hurricane, ice storm.
Drought now: No, but abnormally dry (D0)
No drought, but abnormally dry. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 53.05% of Northwest Hills Planning Region is D0 Abnormally Dry and none of it is in drought (D1 to D4). Some of it has been abnormally dry or worse for at least 54 weeks in a row.
Drought in Northwest Hills Planning Region: the last 52 weeks · droughtmonitor.unl.edu
The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC.
Risk, loss, vulnerability and resilience
| Measure | Rating and score |
|---|---|
| Overall risk Expected annual loss, adjusted for social vulnerability and community resilience. |
Relatively low 79.6 |
| Expected annual loss About $53.6 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards. |
Relatively moderate 84.7 |
| Social vulnerability Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover. |
Very low 12.8 |
| Community resilience Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover. |
Relatively high 76.7 |
Risk by hazard
FEMA's risk rating for each of 18 natural hazards in Northwest Hills Planning Region, highest first. "Not applicable" means the hazard is not modelled here.
| Hazard | Risk rating and score |
|---|---|
| Inland (riverine) flooding | Relatively moderate 88 |
| Hurricane | Relatively moderate 86 |
| Ice storm | Relatively moderate 80 |
| Landslide | Relatively low 82 |
| Earthquake | Relatively low 66 |
| Winter weather | Relatively low 51 |
| Cold wave | Relatively low 50 |
| Strong wind | Relatively low 48 |
| Lightning | Relatively low 47 |
| Hail | Relatively low 44 |
| Tornado | Relatively low 42 |
| Drought | Relatively low 40 |
| Avalanche | Very low 50 |
| Wildfire | Very low 39 |
| Heat wave | Very low 30 |
| Coastal flooding | Not applicable |
| Tsunami | Not applicable |
| Volcanic activity | Not applicable |
FEMA disaster declarations for Northwest Hills Planning Region
Federal declarations that designated Northwest Hills Planning Region, since 1 Jan 2024 (the period this site keeps from OpenFEMA). Older declarations are in FEMA's own dataset.
This page cannot match Northwest Hills Planning Region to FEMA's records: FEMA designates Connecticut's former counties, while the Risk Index uses its planning regions. Every Connecticut declaration is on this site's FEMA declarations page for the state.
All FEMA declarations in Connecticut, with estimated apply-by dates · Open FEMA deadlines
This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s). Dataset: Disaster Declarations Summaries - v2.
How to read these ratings
- Ratings run in five steps: very low, relatively low, relatively moderate, relatively high and very high. They compare a county with every other US county; they are not a measure of danger on their own.
- Scores run from 0 to 100 and are national percentiles. The bar shows the score: a score of 80 means a higher value than 80% of US counties.
- Overall risk combines the expected annual loss with social vulnerability and community resilience.
- Expected annual loss is the average yearly loss to buildings, people and agriculture the model expects from all 18 hazards.
- Social vulnerability describes how hard it may be for people to prepare for and recover from a disaster. Higher is worse.
- Community resilience describes a community's ability to prepare, adapt and recover. Higher is better.
- "Not applicable" means FEMA does not model that hazard there (for example, hurricanes far inland).
About this data
Source: FEMA National Risk Index, version 1.20, released December 2025, published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (US public domain). About the National Risk Index. The index is a model of relative risk built from historical hazard records, what is exposed and community factors. It is not a forecast, it does not describe any single property, and it is not insurance or financial advice. For decisions about a specific address, check FEMA's flood maps and your local emergency management office.
Questions
What is the natural disaster risk in Northwest Hills Planning Region, Connecticut?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in Northwest Hills Planning Region as relatively low, with a score of 79.6 out of 100 (higher than 79% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.
What are the biggest natural hazards in Northwest Hills Planning Region?
The hazards rated highest for Northwest Hills Planning Region are inland (riverine) flooding (relatively moderate), hurricane (relatively moderate), ice storm (relatively moderate).
What is the flood risk in Northwest Hills Planning Region?
FEMA rates inland (river and rain) flooding risk in Northwest Hills Planning Region as relatively moderate. For a specific property, check the FEMA flood map and your local floodplain office.
Has Northwest Hills Planning Region had a FEMA disaster declaration?
This page cannot match Northwest Hills Planning Region to FEMA's records: FEMA designates Connecticut's former counties, while the Risk Index uses its planning regions. Every Connecticut declaration is on this site's FEMA declarations page for the state.
Is Northwest Hills Planning Region in a drought?
No drought, but abnormally dry. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, 53.05% of Northwest Hills Planning Region is D0 Abnormally Dry and none of it is in drought (D1 to D4). Some of it has been abnormally dry or worse for at least 54 weeks in a row.
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