Hazard Plain Automated baseline

Washington County, RI

Risk-assessment baseline packet

County FIPS:
44009
Release:
2026-10
Data as of:
2026-09-30
Storm Events data through:
2026-06-30

Hazard Plain is an independent product built from public federal data. It is not a FEMA document and is not reviewed or endorsed by FEMA or any state agency.

Hazard Plain release 2026-10, as of 2026-09-30.

Summary

Plan status as of 2026-09-30: No county-level plan row in FEMA data.

Highest expected annual loss (FEMA National Risk Index, modeled total; see B1-a): Inland Flooding ($21,988,034 a year), Hurricane ($3,481,947) and Coastal Flooding ($2,345,028).

The tables that follow are organized by the items of FEMA's Local Mitigation Plan Review Tool, Element B (B1-a to B2-c); each heading says which item its tables support.

Plan clock

No county-level plan row in FEMA data

What changed since your last plan

Not available. No county-level plan row in FEMA data, so there is no approval date to count from.

Sources: 1, 2, 4, 6 (numbered list at the end)

Plan status for every jurisdiction listed in this county

Source: 1

JurisdictionTypeStatusPlanApprovedExpiresDays to expirynegative = days since expiry
Charlestown townTownApproved, expires 2030-11-12Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan Update 2025 Charlestown, Rhode Island (FEMA plan 110911)2025-11-132030-11-121,504
Exeter townTownApproved, expires 2030-08-20Towns of Exeter and West Greenwich, RI 2025 Hazard Mitigation and Floodplain Management Plan Update (FEMA plan 111030)2025-08-212030-08-201,420
Hopkinton townTownApproved, expires 2029-04-232024 Hopkinton Hazard Mitigation and Flood Management Plan Update (FEMA plan 109524)2024-04-242029-04-23936
Narragansett townTownApproved, expires 2029-09-24Strategy for Reducing Risks from Natural Hazards in Narragansett, Rhode Island: A Multi-Hazard Mitigation Strategy (FEMA plan 109838)2024-09-252029-09-241,090
New Shoreham townTownApproved, expires 2030-05-28Town of New Shoreham 2025 Hazard Mitigation & Flood Management Plan (FEMA plan 110784)2025-05-292030-05-281,336
North Kingstown townTownApproved, expires 2030-08-19Town of North Kingstown Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan (FEMA plan 110653)2025-08-202030-08-191,419
Richmond townTownApproved, expires 2027-09-13Richmond, RI Hazard Mitigation Plan 2022 Update (FEMA plan 108289)2022-09-142027-09-13348
South Kingstown townTownApproved, expires 2031-07-06South Kingstown, Rhode Island Hazard Mitigation Plan 2026 Update (FEMA plan 111799)2026-07-072031-07-061,740
Westerly townTownApproved, expires 2028-03-21Town of Westerly 2023 Hazard Mitigation & Flood Management Plan (FEMA plan 108927)2023-03-222028-03-21538
University of Rhode IslandCollege/UniversityApproved, expires 2028-12-122023 Hazard Mitigation Plan, University of Rhode Island (FEMA plan 109186)2023-12-132028-12-12804

State plan status and tribal plans in this state: see the state page.

Supports FEMA checklist item B1-a: hazard identification

Hazards NRI does not cover (local data needed)

  • dam failure (incl. upstream dams)
  • levee failure
  • flash flood as its own subtype
  • ice jams
  • debris flows
  • erosion (riverine and coastal)
  • land subsidence and sinkholes
  • expansive soils

The 18 National Risk Index hazards, ranked by expected annual loss (EAL)

Sources: 5, 6

Rank by EALHazardNRI risk ratingEAL ratingEAL buildingsmodeled dollars per yearEAL agriculturemodeled dollars per yearCost of expected deaths and injuriesFEMA's dollar value per year, not property damageEAL total (see note)modeled dollars per yearStorm Events records, 1996 to 2026-06-30countStorm Events coverage note
1Inland FloodingRelatively ModerateRelatively Moderate$21,962,421$2$25,612$21,988,03429
2HurricaneRelatively ModerateRelatively Moderate$3,167,002$232,538$82,407$3,481,9475
3Coastal FloodingRelatively ModerateRelatively Moderate$2,339,196n/a$5,833$2,345,02811
4EarthquakeRelatively LowRelatively Low$787,144n/a$134,349$921,493Storm Events does not record earthquakes.
5TornadoRelatively LowRelatively Low$546,574$370$117,201$664,1453
6LightningRelatively ModerateRelatively Moderate$22,672n/a$538,214$560,8868
7Cold WaveRelatively LowRelatively Low$260$1,720$423,204$425,1840No recorded events in Storm Events since 1996 (data through 2026-06-30).
8Heat WaveRelatively LowRelatively Low$1$2,255$416,282$418,5383
9Strong WindRelatively LowRelatively Low$157,120$1$235,407$392,529191Includes 77 High Wind and 73 Strong Wind records (NOAA non-thunderstorm wind types, outside NRI's Strong Wind definition).
10Ice StormRelatively ModerateRelatively Moderate$276,557n/a$33,585$310,1420No recorded events in Storm Events since 1996 (data through 2026-06-30).
11DroughtRelatively LowRelatively Lown/a$123,855n/a$123,8554
12Winter WeatherRelatively LowRelatively Low$12,677$9$52,893$65,57976
13WildfireVery LowVery Low$11,118$1$1,533$12,6530Declared 1 time; no Storm Events record of this type.
14HailVery LowVery Low$4,764$28$1,567$6,35925
15LandslideVery LowVery Low$542n/a$204$7460No recorded events in Storm Events since 1996 (data through 2026-06-30).
TsunamiInsufficient DataInsufficient Datan/an/an/an/a0No recorded events in Storm Events since 1996 (data through 2026-06-30).

Total = buildings + agriculture + population equivalence; FEMA values each expected death (or 10 injuries) at $13.7 million (2024 dollars).

NRI risk rating combines expected annual loss with social vulnerability and community resilience; EAL rating rates expected annual loss alone. Both compare this county with all U.S. counties.

Local data needed: state and local wildfire, landslide and tsunami records (Storm Events records these hazards only in part).

Not applicable to this county per NRI, with no federal declaration and no Storm Events record since 1996: avalanche and volcanic activity. That is the evidence for leaving them out of the plan.

The state hazard mitigation plan also lists hazards for this county; FEMA asks the plan to explain any hazard it leaves out.

Supports FEMA checklist item B1-b: hazard location

Affects the whole county (national data give no location within it): Cold Wave, Drought, Hail, Heat Wave, Ice Storm, Lightning, Strong Wind and Winter Weather.

Coastal Flooding and Inland Flooding: The FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) is the required location source for flooding. See the FEMA Flood Map Service Center (https://msc.fema.gov) for this county.

Hazards that vary within the county: highest-rated census tracts

Source: 5

HazardHighest-rated census tractsNRI risk rating, score 0 to 100
Earthquaketract 514 (Relatively Low, 77.3); tract 501.03 (Relatively Low, 69.8); tract 508.02 (Relatively Low, 63.3)
Hurricanetract 501.03 (Relatively Moderate, 85.3); tract 513.02 (Relatively Moderate, 84.2); tract 514 (Relatively Moderate, 83.8)
Landslidetract 505 (Relatively Low, 83.3); tract 511.01 (Very Low, 81.0); tract 506 (Very Low, 78.4)
Tornadotract 514 (Relatively Low, 49.7); tract 501.03 (Relatively Low, 48.3); tract 505 (Relatively Low, 40.2)
Tsunamino tract has a National Risk Index rating for this hazard
Wildfiretract 505 (Relatively Low, 69.0); tract 506 (Very Low, 66.4); tract 507.01 (Very Low, 66.2)

Up to 3 census tracts per hazard, highest National Risk Index rating first, then highest score; a tract number is the Census tract number (for example 514 is Census Tract 514). FEMA's Resilience Analysis and Planning Tool maps the National Risk Index for every tract: https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/resilience-analysis-and-planning-tool

Supports FEMA checklist item B1-c: hazard extent

Extent: scale, observed range and worst recorded event per hazard

Sources: 6, 7

HazardScaleRecordscount and yearsObserved rangeWorst recorded eventMost damaging (when different)How it applies to jurisdictionsNote
Coastal Flood, Storm Surge/Tidenone in data (flood depth: FIRM)11 records, 1997 to 2024 (11 zone-level)Coastal Flood, 2012-10-29, $4,700,000 property; $0 crops (2012 dollars); NWS zone RIZ006Countywide (zone-level records).Flood depth: see the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map.
Cold/Wind Chill, Extreme Cold/Wind Chillwind chill0
Frost/Freeze (outside NRI's Cold Wave definition)crop damage0
DroughtU.S. Drought Monitor scale (D0 to D4)4 records, 2012 to 2016 (4 zone-level)13 days to 79 days (median 46 days); 2 with a recorded value79 days (about 2.6 months), 2016-09-13 to 2016-11-30, a run of 3 consecutive Storm Events drought records, zone-levelCountywide (zone-level records).Storm Events enters a drought at D2 or worse east of the Rockies and D3 or worse from the Rockies west (NWS Instruction 10-1605); NRI drought counts D3 and D4 only.
EarthquakeModified Mercalli (local data)0Storm Events does not record earthquakes; the USGS earthquake catalog is the source.
Hailhail size (inches)27 records, 1995 to 20240.75 in to 2.75 in (median 1 in); 27 with a recorded value2.75 in hail, 1998-06-30Event records naming jurisdictions in the plan: North Kingstown town (8 records), Richmond town (3 records), Charlestown town (1 record), Exeter town (1 record), Hopkinton town (1 record), South Kingstown town (1 record), Westerly town (1 record).
Excessive Heat, Heatheat index (in event narratives)3 records, 2010 to 2025 (3 zone-level)1 day to 4 days (median 2.5 days); 2 with a recorded value4 consecutive days, 2025-06-22 to 2025-06-25, zone-levelCountywide (zone-level records).
Hurricane, Tropical Storm, Tropical DepressionSaffir-Simpson5 records, 2011 to 2021 (5 zone-level)Strongest recorded: Tropical Storm record, 2021-08-22, $1,000,000 property; $0 crops (2021 dollars); NWS zone RIZ006Countywide (zone-level records).Storm Events files every zone of a storm's episode under the storm's type; flooding from the storm is filed as Flood or Flash Flood records.
Ice StormSperry-Piltz ice scale (local data)0
Flash Flood, Flood, Lakeshore Flooddamage and flood days (flood depth: FIRM)29 records, 1997 to 2024 (2 zone-level)Flood, 2010-03-29, $24,760,000 property; $0 crops (2010 dollars)Event records naming jurisdictions in the plan: Charlestown town (3 records), North Kingstown town (2 records), Westerly town (2 records), Exeter town (1 record), Richmond town (1 record). Zone-level records (2) apply countywide.Flood depth: see the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Map. Storm Events damage is often $0 or blank for floods, major ones included; FEMA Public Assistance by declaration (B1-d) shows which floods cost the most.
Debris Flownone (count and damage only)0
Lightningannualized frequency (the measure FEMA's Local Mitigation Planning Handbook names)8 records, 2001 to 2023Lightning, 2004-08-11, damage not reported, 1 direct death, 1 direct injuryLightning, 2012-06-25, $25,000 property; $0 crops (2012 dollars)Event records naming jurisdictions in the plan: Charlestown town (1 record).Storm Events lists lightning with damage or casualties.
High Wind and Strong Wind (outside NRI's Strong Wind definition)wind speed (kt and mph)150 records, 1996 to 2025 (150 zone-level)33 kt (38 mph) to 75 kt (86 mph) (median 50 kt (58 mph)); 105 with a recorded value75 kt (86 mph) estimated gust, High Wind, 2012-10-29, 1 direct injury (reported for the zone); NWS zone RIZ006High Wind, 2005-12-09, $80,000 property; crops not reported (zone total, 2005 dollars)Countywide (zone-level records).
Thunderstorm Windwind speed (kt and mph)51 records, 1959 to 202339 kt (45 mph) to 100 kt (115 mph) (median 50 kt (58 mph)); 45 with a recorded value100 kt (115 mph), measurement type not recorded, Thunderstorm Wind, 1990-10-18Thunderstorm Wind, 1996-08-24, $750,000 property; crops not reported (1996 dollars)Event records naming jurisdictions in the plan: Westerly town (5 records), Hopkinton town (3 records), Charlestown town (2 records), Exeter town (1 record), North Kingstown town (1 record), Richmond town (1 record).
TornadoEnhanced Fujita (Fujita before Feb 2007)3 records, 2012 to 2021F/EF0 to F/EF1 (median F/EF0); 3 with a recorded valueEF1 tornado, 2021-11-13, 1.1 mi within this county, 100 yd wide, $50,000 property; $0 crops (2021 dollars)Tornado, 2021-11-13, $50,000 property; $0 crops (2021 dollars)Event records naming jurisdictions in the plan: North Kingstown town (1 record), Westerly town (1 record).Before 1996 a tornado is listed once, under the county where it began, with its whole path's rating and length; from 1996 on, each county lists its own segment. Length is not used to rank tornadoes (see Methods).
Tsunaminone (count and damage only)0
Wildfireacres burned (local data)0
Winter Storm, Heavy Snow, Blizzard, Lake-Effect Snow, Winter Weather, Sleetnone in data (snowfall: local data)76 records, 1996 to 2026 (76 zone-level)Heavy Snow, 1997-04-01, $100,000 property; crops not reported (1997 dollars); NWS zone RIZ006Countywide (zone-level records).

In event narratives only (local data needed): wind chill, temperature, heat index, ice thickness, acres burned and snow depth; any physical measure of debris flow, lightning and tsunami.

Storm Events records are more complete after 1996; before 1996 only Tornado (from 1950), Hail and Thunderstorm Wind (from 1955) exist. Zone-level records from zones that no NWS zone-county file places in this county (mostly before 2020) are not counted here (the Methods page explains the zone matching).

Dollars are nominal (as reported), labeled with the year; not adjusted for inflation.

Supports FEMA checklist item B1-d: previous occurrences

Federal declarations for this county: 25 declarations covering 18 separate hazard incidents counted in this packet (declarations for the same incident count once; non-natural and evacuation-only declarations are not counted).

No county-level plan row in FEMA data, so there is no approval date to count from.

Federal disaster declarations for this county

Sources: 1, 2, 3

DeclaredIncident beganFEMA numberTypeTitleMapped hazardCounty Public Assistancefederal share obligated, nominal dollarsFlagsNotes
2024-03-202024-01-09DR-4766-RIMajor disasterSevere Storms and FloodingInland Flooding$811,089.82within last 5 years
2024-03-202023-12-17DR-4765-RIMajor disasterSevere Storm and FloodingInland FloodingPA not declared for this countywithin last 5 years
2023-04-142023-04-14FM-5464-RIFire managementQueens River FireWildfireno Public Assistance recordedwithin last 5 years
2022-05-122022-01-28DR-4653-RIMajor disasterSevere Winter Storm and SnowstormWinter Weather$597,908.12within last 5 years
2021-08-212021-08-20EM-3563-RIEmergencyHurricane HenriHurricaneno Public Assistance recorded
2020-03-302020-01-20DR-4505-RIMajor disasterCOVID-19 PandemicNon-natural, not counted$13,978,852.06
2020-03-132020-01-20EM-3440-RIEmergencyCOVID-19Non-natural, not countedno Public Assistance recordedsame incident as DR-4505
2015-04-032015-01-26DR-4212-RIMajor disasterSevere Winter Storm and SnowstormWinter Weather$619,267.22
2013-03-222013-02-08DR-4107-RIMajor disasterSevere Winter Storm and SnowstormWinter Weather$927,723.50
2012-11-032012-10-26DR-4089-RIMajor disasterHurricane SandyHurricane$4,168,911.90
2012-10-292012-10-26EM-3355-RIEmergencyHurricane SandyHurricaneno Public Assistance recordedsame incident as DR-4089
2011-09-032011-08-27DR-4027-RIMajor disasterTropical Storm IreneHurricane$704,515.10
2011-08-272011-08-26EM-3334-RIEmergencyHurricane IreneHurricaneno Public Assistance recordedsame incident as DR-4027
2010-03-302010-03-12EM-3311-RIEmergencySevere Storms and FloodingInland Floodingno Public Assistance recordedsame incident as DR-1894
2010-03-292010-03-12DR-1894-RIMajor disasterSevere Storms and FloodingInland Flooding$2,712,200.55
2005-09-192005-08-29EM-3255-RIEmergencyHurricane Katrina EvacuationHurricane: evacuation support, not a local hazard event; not countedno Public Assistance recorded
2005-02-172005-01-22EM-3203-RIEmergencyRecord SnowWinter Weather$484,557.71
2003-03-272003-02-17EM-3182-RIEmergencySnowWinter Weather$207,682.12
1996-01-241996-01-07DR-1091-RIMajor disasterBlizzard of 96 (Severe Snow Storm)Winter Weatherno Public Assistance recorded
1993-03-161993-03-13EM-3102-RIEmergencyBlizzards, High Winds & Record SnowfallWinter Weatherno Public Assistance recorded
1992-09-161992-08-03EM-3094-RIEmergencyWater ContaminationNon-natural, not countedno Public Assistance recorded
1991-08-261991-08-19DR-913-RIMajor disasterHurricane BobHurricaneno Public Assistance recorded
1985-10-151985-09-27DR-748-RIMajor disasterHurricane GloriaHurricaneno Public Assistance recorded
1978-02-161978-02-16DR-548-RIMajor disasterSnow & IceWinter WeatherPA not declared for this county
1978-02-071978-02-07EM-3058-RIEmergencyBlizzard & SnowstormsWinter Weatherno Public Assistance recorded

School districts and special districts in this county: $12,310,059.37 (included in the county total above). Public Assistance matched by applicant name to the school districts and special districts FEMA lists as plan participants in this county. They have no row of their own in the jurisdiction table, so their total is listed here. These dollars are already included in the county PA column of the declarations table (the FEMA record places each applicant in this county), so this line is not added to it.

County Public Assistance: applicants the FEMA record places in this county, including any state agencies FEMA files there; statewide rows are listed on the state page; federal share obligated, nominal dollars.

Statewide declarations

Source: 2

DeclaredIncident beganFEMA numberTypeTitleMapped hazard
1955-08-201955-08-20DR-39-RIMajor disasterHurricane & FloodHurricane (primary); also designated: Inland Flooding
1954-09-021954-09-02DR-23-RIMajor disasterHurricanesHurricane (primary); also designated: Inland Flooding

FEMA recorded these with designated area Statewide and no county, so they are listed on every county page in the state and not counted with county rows. Local data needed: whether each one affected this county.

Previous occurrences by hazard, with explicit no-event rows

Sources: 2, 6, 7

HazardStorm Events records, all years on file(years in the Period column)Since plan approvalrecordsIn the 12 months before plan approvalrecordsLast 5 yearsrecordsDeclared incidents, all yearsseparate disastersDeclared since approvalseparate disastersPeriodStatement
Coastal Flooding11301996 to 2026-06-30
Cold Wave0001996 to 2026-06-30No recorded events, 1996 to 2026-06-30, NOAA NCEI Storm Events
Drought4001996 to 2026-06-30
Earthquake000Storm Events does not record earthquakes; the USGS earthquake catalog is the source.
Hail27501955 to 2026-06-30
Heat Wave3101996 to 2026-06-30
Hurricane5051996 to 2026-06-30
Ice Storm0001996 to 2026-06-30No recorded events, 1996 to 2026-06-30, NOAA NCEI Storm Events
Inland Flooding29631996 to 2026-06-30
Landslide0001996 to 2026-06-30No recorded events, 1996 to 2026-06-30, NOAA NCEI Storm Events
Lightning8101996 to 2026-06-30
Strong Wind2012501955 to 2026-06-30Includes 77 High Wind and 73 Strong Wind records.
Tornado3201950 to 2026-06-30
Tsunami0001996 to 2026-06-30No recorded events, 1996 to 2026-06-30, NOAA NCEI Storm Events
Wildfire0011996 to 2026-06-30No Storm Events records of this type; 1 federal declared incident (see declarations table)
Winter Weather76791996 to 2026-06-30

Notable Storm Events records

Sources: 1, 6, 7

DateEvent typeMagnitude or extentDamagenominal dollarsDeaths, injuriesdirect onlyLocationFlagsWhy listed
2025-06-22Excessive Heat$0 property; $0 crops (zone total, 2025 dollars)0, 3NWS zone RIZ008 (BLOCK ISLAND), zone-levelwithin last 5 yearsdeaths or injuries recorded
2021-11-13TornadoEF1, 1.1 mi within this county, 100 yd wide$50,000 property; $0 crops (2021 dollars)0, 0WHITE ROCK to WESTERLYwithin last 5 yearsB1-c worst recorded: Tornado
2021-11-13TornadoEF0, 1.5 mi within this county, 150 yd wide$50,000 property; $0 crops (2021 dollars)0, 0LA FAYETTE to NORTH KINGSTOWNwithin last 5 yearsB1-c most damaging: Tornado
2021-08-22Tropical Storm$1,000,000 property; $0 crops (zone total, 2021 dollars)0, 0NWS zone RIZ006 (WASHINGTON), zone-levelB1-c worst recorded: Hurricane, Tropical Storm, Tropical Depression
2016-09-13Drought$0 property; $0 crops (zone total, 2016 dollars)0, 0NWS zone RIZ006 (WASHINGTON), zone-levelB1-c worst recorded: Drought
2012-10-29Coastal Flood$4,700,000 property; $0 crops (zone total, 2012 dollars)0, 0NWS zone RIZ006 (WASHINGTON), zone-levelB1-c worst recorded: Coastal Flood, Storm Surge/Tide
2012-10-29High Wind75 kt (86 mph) estimated gust$75,000 property; $0 crops (zone total, 2012 dollars)0, 1NWS zone RIZ006 (WASHINGTON), zone-leveldeaths or injuries recorded
2010-03-29Flood$24,760,000 property; $0 crops (2010 dollars)0, 0ESCOHEAG to WATCH HILLB1-c worst recorded: Flash Flood, Flood, Lakeshore Flood
2004-08-11Lightningdamage not reported1, 1NARRAGANSETT PIERdeaths or injuries recorded
1998-06-30Hail2.75 indamage not reported0, 0RICHMONDB1-c worst recorded: Hail
1997-04-01Heavy Snow$100,000 property; crops not reported (zone total, 1997 dollars)0, 0NWS zone RIZ006 (WASHINGTON), zone-levelB1-c worst recorded: Winter Storm, Heavy Snow, Blizzard, Lake-Effect Snow, Winter Weather, Sleet
1990-10-18Thunderstorm Wind100 kt (115 mph), measurement type not recordeddamage not recorded (pre-1996 record)0, 0location not recordedB1-c worst recorded: Thunderstorm Wind

The full list is in the Excel file, sheet "B1-d Storm Events history" (367 rows).

Location is the place NOAA recorded, as written in its data; it need not be a jurisdiction in this plan.

Local data needed: state-declared emergencies, from your state emergency management agency (federal data do not include them).

Tribal and special-area declarations in this state are listed on the state page.

Supports FEMA checklist item B1-e: probability of future events

Probability: FEMA annualized frequency and descriptor per hazard

Sources: 5, 6

HazardFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)unit per rowUnitIn plain termsDescriptorDescriptor basisNRI events or days in its record period (hail, wind and tornado are area-weighted, so can be fractional)NRI periodLocationNote
Coastal Flooding3.69events per year at a location (modeled)about 3.7 per year at a given location in the countyHighly likelyFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)not shownmodeledsee B1-fDescriptor from NRI: the rate at a location is 1 or more a year, so the county rate is at least that.
Cold Wave0.723event-days per yearabout 0.723 days per yearStorm Events event-days in 0 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (0%)8.62005-11-12 to 2024-11-12 (19 years)countywideNo Storm Events cold wave record, 1996 to 2025.
Drought3.41event-days per yearabout 3.41 days per yearPossibleStorm Events event-days in 2 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (6.67%)912000 to 2025 (25.25 years; D3 and D4 only)countywide
Earthquake0.00111annual probability at a locationchance a given location in the county has at least minor-damage shaking in a year: 0.111%not shownmodeledsee B1-fNo descriptor (Storm Events does not record earthquakes).
Hail1.51events per yearabout 1.51 per yearHighly likelyFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)57.9 (modeled)1986 to 2023 (38 years)countywide
Heat Wave3.38event-days per yearabout 3.38 days per yearPossibleStorm Events event-days in 2 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (6.67%)34.12005-11-12 to 2024-11-12 (19 years)countywide
Hurricane0.183events per yearabout 1 in 5 yearsLikelyFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)641851 to 2024 (Atlantic)see B1-fNRI counts hurricane and tropical storm tracks passing within storm-force wind range; federal declarations are in B1-d.
Ice Storm1.41event-days per yearabout 1.41 days per yearStorm Events event-days in 0 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (0%)591946-12-31 to 2014-02-12 (67 years)countywideNo Storm Events ice storm record, 1996 to 2025
Inland Flooding0.75event-days per yearabout 0.75 days per yearLikelyStorm Events event-days in 16 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (53.3%)211996 to 2023 (28 years)see B1-f
Landslide0.105events per year (modeled)about 1 in 10 yearsLikelyFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)not shownmodeledsee B1-f
Lightning20.9days per year with a strikeabout 20.9 days per yearHighly likelyFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)not shown1995 to 2023 (29 years; CONUS)countywide
Strong Wind1.12events per yearabout 1.12 per yearHighly likelyFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)271986 to 2023 (38 years)countywide
Tornado0.101events per yearabout 1 in 10 yearsLikelyFEMA annualized frequency (modeled)not shown1950 to 2023 (EF2+); 1986 to 2023 (EF0-1)see B1-f
Tsunamiannual probability at the most exposed location (used in place of a county value)Storm Events records in 0 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (0%)not shownmodeledsee B1-fNo descriptor: no Storm Events record 1996 to 2025
Wildfire0.0000217annual probability at a locationchance a given location in the county burns in a year: 0.00217%Storm Events records in 0 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (0%)not shownmodeledsee B1-fNo descriptor: no Storm Events record 1996 to 2025
Winter Weather10.3event-days per yearabout 10.3 days per yearHighly likelyStorm Events event-days in 28 of 30 years, 1996 to 2025 (93.3%)1232005-11-12 to 2024-11-12 (19 years)countywide

FEMA annualized frequency (modeled) is the National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025) estimate of how often a hazard affects this county in a year; it is not recorded events divided by years, and its unit differs by hazard (events, event-days, or days with a lightning strike per year). For earthquake, wildfire, coastal flooding and tsunami the value is the chance (or number of events) at a location in the county, not across the county, so no "1 in N years" is given and the descriptor comes from Storm Events where it has a record (none for earthquake). The Methods page gives each hazard's method, from FEMA's National Risk Index Technical Documentation v1.20.

Where NRI gives event-days, the descriptor comes from the share of years with a Storm Events record; NRI's source records more events, so the two differ.

Descriptor scale used in this packet (defined per unit)

Sources: 5, 6

UnitDescriptorDefinition
events per yearHighly likely1 or more per year
events per yearLikelyabout once in 1 to 10 years
events per yearPossibleabout once in 10 to 100 years
events per yearUnlikelyless than once in 100 years
annual probabilityLikely10% to under 100% chance in a given year
annual probabilityPossible1% to under 10% chance in a given year
annual probabilityUnlikelyunder 1% chance in a given year
event-days (share of years)Highly likelyevent-days recorded in 90% or more of years
event-days (share of years)Likelyevent-days recorded in 10% to under 90% of years
event-days (share of years)Possibleevent-days recorded in some years but under 10% of years
lightning strike-daysHighly likelycloud-to-ground strikes on 1 or more days per year

Intensity bands: historical frequency (Storm Events)

Source: 6

HazardBandYearsEventscounty-coded recordsYears in periodEvents per yearevents / years
Hail1.00-1.99 in1996 to 202513300.433
Hail2.00 in+1996 to 20251300.0333
Thunderstorm Wind (counted as NRI Strong Wind)50-64 kt1996 to 202537301.23
Thunderstorm Wind (counted as NRI Strong Wind)65 kt+1996 to 20251300.0333
Thunderstorm Wind (counted as NRI Strong Wind)unmeasured or below 50 kt1996 to 20253300.1
TornadoEF0-11996 to 20253300.1
TornadoEF2-31996 to 20250300
TornadoEF4-51996 to 20250300
Tornadounrated (EFU)1996 to 20250300

The bands show how often events of each severity were recorded in this county, to profile how severe events have been (FEMA's probability item asks for the range of intensities).

Hail smaller than 1 inch is not counted: on 2010-01-05 the National Weather Service raised its severe-hail threshold from 3/4 inch to 1 inch, so smaller reports became less common after 2009 (NWS Service Change Notice 09-52). NRI hail frequency uses a 0.75 inch threshold.

Optional: future conditions. Not a required item in the 2025 FEMA Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide; some states ask for it. The federal Climate Mapping for Resilience and Adaptation (CMRA) site gives county exposure to future climate conditions (https://resilience.climate.gov/).

Supports FEMA checklist item B1-f: hazards that vary across jurisdictions

Range of census tract risk within the county

Source: 5

HazardTractsrated of allNRI risk score, 0 to 100Tracts by rating
MinMedianMax
Coastal Flooding23 of 2969.691.999.2Relatively High 6, Relatively Moderate 7, Relatively Low 5, Very Low 5, No Rating 6
Cold Wave29 of 2917.225.435.6Relatively Low 28, Very Low 1
Drought17 of 2968.881.091.5Relatively Low 11, Very Low 6, No Rating 12
Earthquake29 of 2921.144.977.3Relatively Low 16, Very Low 13
Hail29 of 291.43.415.0Very Low 29
Heat Wave29 of 291.716.037.0Relatively Low 11, Very Low 18
Hurricane29 of 2963.175.785.3Relatively Moderate 10, Relatively Low 19
Ice Storm29 of 297.359.491.4Relatively High 1, Relatively Moderate 9, Relatively Low 14, Very Low 5
Inland Flooding29 of 297.845.590.2Relatively High 5, Relatively Moderate 9, Relatively Low 13, Very Low 2
Landslide29 of 2940.259.583.3Relatively Low 1, Very Low 28
Lightning29 of 2929.559.684.7Relatively High 2, Relatively Moderate 20, Relatively Low 7
Strong Wind29 of 2917.335.165.6Relatively Moderate 2, Relatively Low 25, Very Low 2
Tornado29 of 2910.628.549.7Relatively Low 13, Very Low 16
Tsunami0 of 29Insufficient Data 29
Wildfire29 of 2927.651.769.0Relatively Low 1, Very Low 28
Winter Weather29 of 2923.542.161.4Relatively Moderate 9, Relatively Low 20

Drought: Agriculture is all of NRI's expected annual loss for this hazard in the county, so the tract range mostly reflects where crop and livestock value is.

Rated tracts only: No Rating (score 0.0), Not Applicable and Insufficient Data tracts are counted but not used for the minimum, median and maximum.

The score ranks a tract against all U.S. tracts (100 = highest). The rating is FEMA's category for the tract's risk value, computed differently, so the two can disagree.

Frequency data for cold wave, drought, hail, heat wave, ice storm, lightning, strong wind and winter weather are county-wide or coarse (49 km grid or NWS zone), the same for every jurisdiction; the tract range mostly reflects where buildings and people are (crop and livestock value where a line above names agriculture).

Each jurisdiction (starting figures from federal data)

Sources: 1, 3, 4, 6

JurisdictionTypePlan statusRepetitive lossFMA RL and SRL (44 CFR 77.2); repeat-flood, any definitionPublic Assistance to this jurisdictionFEMA records matched by applicant name; federal share obligated, nominal dollarsEvent records naming this placeall years; since its planNotes
Charlestown townTownApproved, expires 2030-11-12FMA RL 0, SRL 1; any 11$702,825.437 total; 0 since its planIncludes $102,429.84 for declarations not counted as hazard incidents (DR-4505-RI).
Exeter townTownApproved, expires 2030-08-20FMA RL 0, SRL 0; any 0$795,586.093 total; 0 since its planIncludes $24,677.90 for declarations not counted as hazard incidents (DR-4505-RI).
Hopkinton townTownApproved, expires 2029-04-23FMA RL 0, SRL 0; any 0$575,233.064 total; 0 since its plan
Narragansett townTownApproved, expires 2029-09-24FMA RL 2, SRL 7; any 24$1,621,233.920 total; 0 since its planIncludes $435,540.72 for declarations not counted as hazard incidents (DR-4505-RI).
New Shoreham townTownApproved, expires 2030-05-28FMA RL 0, SRL 0; any 0$108,140.030 total; 0 since its plan
North Kingstown townTownApproved, expires 2030-08-19FMA RL 0, SRL 3; any 14$1,096,753.9912 total; 0 since its planIncludes $364,940.63 for declarations not counted as hazard incidents (DR-4505-RI).
Richmond townTownApproved, expires 2027-09-13FMA RL 0, SRL 0; any 1$751,346.835 total; 0 since its planIncludes $4,852.72 for declarations not counted as hazard incidents (DR-4505-RI).
South Kingstown townTownApproved, expires 2031-07-06FMA RL 7, SRL 11; any 28$1,257,966.141 total; Storm Events data end 2026-06-30, before this plan's approvalIncludes $72,855.84 for declarations not counted as hazard incidents (DR-4505-RI).
Westerly townTownApproved, expires 2028-03-21FMA RL 3, SRL 13; any 51$3,353,655.689 total; 2 since its planIncludes $179,296.70 for declarations not counted as hazard incidents (DR-4505-RI).

Repetitive-loss counts are for whole NFIP communities, which can extend beyond this county (see the note in B2-c).

School districts and special districts get a plan clock row only.

County Public Assistance in B1-d also includes applicants filed under the county that are not jurisdictions in this plan (for example state agencies, special districts and nonprofits), so the jurisdiction rows add up to less.

Supports FEMA checklist items B2-a and B2-b: vulnerability and potential impacts

Local data needed

The table below gives county-level starting figures; the plan describes impacts for each jurisdiction and its own assets.

No county-level plan row in FEMA data, so there is no approval date to count from.

  • Critical facilities and lifelines per hazard
  • A problem statement per jurisdiction per hazard
  • Changes in development in hazard-prone areas since the last approval, or a statement of none (E1-a)
  • Future assets

County-level starter: exposure, expected annual loss and damage since the plan

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7

HazardBuilding exposuremodeled dollarsAgriculture exposuremodeled dollarsPopulation exposedpeopleEAL buildingsmodeled dollars per yearEAL agriculturemodeled dollars per yearCost of expected deaths and injuriesFEMA's dollar value per year, not property damageEAL as % of exposurebuildings; agriculture where notedStorm Events damage since plancounty-coded records, property plus crops, nominal dollarsZone-level damage since planproperty plus crops, reported for the zonePublic Assistance since plannominal dollars; see noteNote
Coastal Flooding$5,182,758,519n/a13,366$2,339,196n/a$5,8330.0451%
Cold Wave$33,580,964,074$28,571,687129,802$260$1,720$423,204under 0.0001%
Droughtn/a$18,660,649n/an/a$123,855n/a0.664% (agriculture)NRI has no building exposure for this hazard; agriculture shown
Earthquake$58,106,742,325n/a129,839$787,144n/a$134,3490.00135%
Hail$33,580,965,561$28,571,687129,802$4,764$28$1,567under 0.0001%
Heat Wave$33,580,964,074$28,571,687129,802$1$2,255$416,282under 0.0001%
Hurricane$33,580,836,165$28,571,687129,801$3,167,002$232,538$82,4070.00943%
Ice Storm$33,194,420,715n/a128,059$276,557n/a$33,5850.000833%
Inland Flooding$33,474,343,640$705,0537,066$21,962,421$2$25,612n/a (see note)NRI counts the full building value of any census block with some flood loss; this is not the value of buildings in the floodplain. Use local FIRM overlays for B2-a/B2-b.
Landslide$587,881,261n/a2,241$542n/a$204under 0.0001%
Lightning$33,580,965,561n/a129,802$22,672n/a$538,214under 0.0001%
Strong Wind$33,580,965,561$28,571,687129,802$157,120$1$235,4070.000468%
Tornado$33,580,965,561$28,571,687129,802$546,574$370$117,2010.00163%
Tsunamin/an/an/an/an/an/aNRI publishes no building exposure for this county
Wildfire$7,973,091,059$7,284,21536,327$11,118$1$1,5330.000139%
Winter Weather$33,580,964,074$28,571,687129,802$12,677$9$52,893under 0.0001%

Totals since the plan: not available. No county-level plan row in FEMA data, so there is no approval date to count from.

FEMA does not split Public Assistance by hazard. A declaration mapped to several hazards is listed under each of them with its full amount, so the per-hazard column does not add up to the total; the unit total counts each declaration once.

NRI computes earthquake exposure on its own basis, so it exceeds the county building value in B2-a.

Supports FEMA checklist item B2-a: vulnerability (county context)

County context

Source: 5

MeasureValue
Population129,802
Building value (total, not at risk)$33,580,965,561
Agriculture value (total, not at risk)$28,571,687
NRI risk rating (all hazards)Relatively Low
Expected annual loss, buildings and agriculture, all hazards$29,648,827
Expected annual loss, population equivalence, all hazards (NRI values each statistical life at $13.7M; a modeled value of expected deaths and injuries, not property damage)$2,068,292
Social vulnerability ratingVery Low
Community resilience ratingVery High
NRI versionDecember 2025

FEMA's all-hazard expected annual loss adds buildings, agriculture and population equivalence; this table gives the property part and the population-equivalence part as separate rows.

Social vulnerability: higher means people are more likely to be harmed and slower to recover. Community resilience: lower means the community is less able to recover. High social vulnerability and low resilience both raise the NRI risk rating.

Supports FEMA checklist item B2-c: repetitive loss properties

Repetitive loss in this county, both definitions

Sources: 1, 4

DefinitionPropertiesSevere repetitive lossProperties
Repetitive loss, FMA definition (44 CFR 77.2)12Severe repetitive loss, FMA definition (44 CFR 77.2)35
Repetitive loss, NFIP insurance definition122Severe repetitive loss, NFIP insurance definition24

The state NFIP coordinator's list, the source FEMA's Handbook names, often uses the NFIP insurance definition (second row).

Repeat-flood properties: county total and NFIP communities

Sources: 1, 4

ScopeRL, FMApropertiesSRL, FMApropertiesRL, NFIPpropertiesSRL, NFIPpropertiesAny categorypropertiesMitigatedpropertiesCurrently insuredproperties
County total123512224129355
of which: Richmond town0010100
of which: Charlestown town011111106
of which: Narragansett town2722424013
of which: North Kingstown town031321429
of which: South Kingstown town7112572807
of which: Westerly town313501051120

Repeat-flood properties by jurisdiction in the plan (NFIP community)

Sources: 1, 4

JurisdictionNFIP community IDRL, FMApropertiesSRL, FMApropertiesRL, NFIPpropertiesSRL, NFIPpropertiesAny categorypropertiesMitigatedpropertiesCurrently insuredproperties
Charlestown town445395011111106
Exeter town4400320000000
Hopkinton town4400280000000
Narragansett town4454022722424013
New Shoreham town4400360000000
North Kingstown town445404031321429
Richmond town4400310010100
South Kingstown town4454077112572807
Westerly town445410313501051120

Counts by occupancy group for each jurisdiction are in the Excel file, sheet "B2-c Jurisdictions".

Jurisdiction rows are whole NFIP communities and need not add up to the county total: a community that extends into another county is counted in full on each jurisdiction row, while the county table counts only its part in this county.

County repeat-flood properties by occupancy group

Sources: 1, 4

Occupancy groupRL, FMApropertiesSRL, FMApropertiesRL, NFIPpropertiesSRL, NFIPpropertiesAny categorypropertiesMitigatedpropertiesCurrently insuredproperties
single-family residential61483987039
2 to 4 unit residential0030300
other residential0010101
non-residential621351538315
not reported0000000

FEMA's occupancy groups have no institutional class; institutional properties are counted in non-residential or other residential in the table by occupancy group.

FMA RL and FMA SRL are the Flood Mitigation Assistance definitions (44 CFR 77.2), the ones the FEMA Local Mitigation Planning Policy Guide cites. NFIP repetitive loss (the FEMA insurance definition) is 2 or more claims over $1,000 in 10 years, and a property can leave that group once it is mitigated. Also shown: NFIP severe repetitive loss, any category, mitigated and currently insured. The Methods page gives the OpenFEMA field details.

Counts are aggregates of FEMA's public NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (FEMA's data date 2026-08-02; file version 2026-08-04). No property is identified. County assignment is FEMA's geocode.

In this county 0 properties are FMA repetitive loss but not NFIP repetitive loss, and 110 properties are NFIP repetitive loss but not FMA repetitive loss.

Exact counts; no count suppression.

Sources

Tables cite these sources by number. The full list, for the plan's bibliography (FEMA review item A4-a):

  1. FEMA, OpenFEMA HazardMitigationPlanStatuses v1, version 2026-09-29T134039Z, pulled 2026-09-30, https://www.fema.gov/api/open/v1/HazardMitigationPlanStatuses (API)
  2. FEMA, OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, version 2026-09-29T162832Z, pulled 2026-09-30, https://www.fema.gov/api/open/v2/DisasterDeclarationsSummaries (API)
  3. FEMA, OpenFEMA PublicAssistanceFundedProjectsSummaries v1, version 2026-09-29T150754Z, pulled 2026-09-30, https://www.fema.gov/api/open/v1/PublicAssistanceFundedProjectsSummaries (API)
  4. FEMA, OpenFEMA NfipMultipleLossProperties v1, version 2026-08-04T164045Z, pulled 2026-09-30, https://www.fema.gov/api/open/v1/NfipMultipleLossProperties (API)
  5. FEMA, FEMA National Risk Index 1.20.0 (December 2025), county and census tract tables, version 1.20.0, pulled 2026-09-30, https://www.fema.gov/about/reports-and-data/openfema/nri/v120/NRI_Table_Counties.zip (download, 25 MB), https://www.fema.gov/about/reports-and-data/openfema/nri/v120/NRI_Table_CensusTracts.zip (download, 635 MB)
  6. NOAA NCEI, NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, details files (csvfiles v1.0), version c20260918, pulled 2026-09-30, https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/swdi/stormevents/csvfiles/
  7. NOAA National Weather Service, NWS county-public forecast zones correlation file, version bp03mr20 to bp16ap26 (11 files; newest bp16ap26), pulled 2026-09-30, https://www.weather.gov/gis/ZoneCounty
  8. U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2024 Gazetteer, 2020 place by county, CT county-to-cousub crosswalk, version 2024-gazetteer, pulled 2026-09-30, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_Gaz_counties_national.zip, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_Gaz_cousubs_national.zip, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_Gaz_place_national.zip, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_Gaz_unsd_national.zip, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_Gaz_elsd_national.zip, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2024_Gazetteer/2024_Gaz_scsd_national.zip, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/reference/codes2020/national_place_by_county2020.txt, https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/reference/ct_change/ct_cou_to_cousub_crosswalk.xlsx (used to match place names and codes; no table prints its values)

What this packet is and what the plan adds

This packet is the federal data for the plan's risk assessment (the summary on page 1 says how it is organized); the plan and FEMA's review decide whether each item is met.

The plan adds what only the community has: local data on assets, critical facilities, development and each jurisdiction's impacts; local hazard history, including state-declared emergencies; the mitigation strategy; and adoption.

How the federal data are built: National Risk Index values are FEMA's model, not counts of events. Storm Events is more complete from 1996; zone-level records are placed by forecast zone, not by location in the county. Public Assistance for a jurisdiction is matched by applicant name. The Methods page gives every rule and the known edge cases.

OpenFEMA disclaimer

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).

Reuse, citation and corrections

Reuse and citation: Hazard Plain text and tables are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/); credit Hazard Plain and the release. The underlying federal data are public domain; OpenFEMA data are also subject to the OpenFEMA terms and conditions.

Cite this: Hazard Plain (2026). Washington County, RI: risk-assessment baseline packet, release 2026-10 (data as of 2026-09-30; County FIPS 44009). Automated baseline. https://hazardplain.org/ri/44009/ Built from FEMA OpenFEMA, the FEMA National Risk Index and NOAA NCEI Storm Events; source versions in the packet's Sources list.

Corrections: to report an error, name the packet, the table and what your records show. Contact: contact@hazardplain.org