Natural disaster risk in Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut

Connecticut · population 620,462 · FIPS 09190

Overall: relatively high risk

Western Connecticut Planning Region has a composite risk score of 96.3 out of 100 — higher than 96% of US counties. It ranks 2 of 9 in Connecticut (1 = highest risk). Its highest-rated hazards are inland (riverine) flooding, strong wind, hurricane.

Drought now: No: no drought or dryness

No. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, no part of Western Connecticut Planning Region is in drought or abnormally dry (none of D0 to D4). That has been so for 8 weeks in a row.

Drought in Western Connecticut 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 high 96.3
Expected annual loss About $259.6 million a year, on average, across all 18 hazards.	Relatively high 96.9
Social vulnerability Higher means people may find it harder to prepare and recover.	Relatively low 21.4
Community resilience Higher means a stronger ability to prepare, adapt and recover.	Relatively high 62.2

Risk by hazard

FEMA's risk rating for each of 18 natural hazards in Western Connecticut Planning Region, highest first. "Not applicable" means the hazard is not modelled here.

Hazard	Risk rating and score
Inland (riverine) flooding	Relatively high 98
Strong wind	Relatively high 97
Hurricane	Relatively high 96
Ice storm	Relatively high 94
Winter weather	Relatively high 94
Coastal flooding	Relatively high 89
Earthquake	Relatively moderate 91
Landslide	Relatively moderate 88
Heat wave	Relatively moderate 84
Lightning	Relatively moderate 78
Tornado	Relatively moderate 69
Cold wave	Relatively moderate 65
Drought	Relatively low 49
Hail	Relatively low 41
Wildfire	Very low 46
Avalanche	Very low 24
Tsunami	Insufficient data
Volcanic activity	Not applicable

FEMA disaster declarations for Western Connecticut Planning Region

Federal declarations that designated Western Connecticut 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 Western Connecticut 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 Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the overall risk in Western Connecticut Planning Region as relatively high, with a score of 96.3 out of 100 (higher than 96% of US counties). That is a comparison with other US counties, not a forecast.

What are the biggest natural hazards in Western Connecticut Planning Region?

The hazards rated highest for Western Connecticut Planning Region are inland (riverine) flooding (relatively high), strong wind (relatively high), hurricane (relatively high).

What is the flood risk in Western Connecticut Planning Region?

FEMA rates inland (river and rain) flooding risk in Western Connecticut Planning Region as relatively high, and coastal flooding risk as relatively high. For a specific property, check the FEMA flood map and your local floodplain office.

Has Western Connecticut Planning Region had a FEMA disaster declaration?

Is Western Connecticut Planning Region in a drought?

No. On the U.S. Drought Monitor map valid 13 October 2026, no part of Western Connecticut Planning Region is in drought or abnormally dry (none of D0 to D4). That has been so for 8 weeks in a row.

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