Vermont floods
Every recorded flood since 1996 · 14 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 911 floods and flash floods in Vermont from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 29 a year since 2000. The deadliest was Hurricane Irene (August 28, 2011): 3 deaths and $1.8 billion in damage in 2025 dollars across 17 records. Vermont ranks 43rd of 52 states and territories by count and 23rd of 51 per square mile.
Floods in Vermont, 1996 to 2026
Flood records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 9111996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 29average
- Deaths
- 115 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $2.1Bas filed
- Busiest year
- 201197 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are floods and flash floods common in Vermont?
Vermont averages about 29 floods and flash floods a year since 2000, 43rd of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2011 (97). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Vermont records 988 floods and flash floods since 1996, 23rd of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Vermont have the most floods and flash floods?
Per square mile, Chittenden County leads Vermont: 63 days with a flood since 1996, 117.4 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Windham County has the most flood records (128 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is flood season in Vermont?
Vermont's floods and flash floods by month. The busiest month is July (225 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 82 · Feb 20 · Mar 43 · Apr 104 · May 98 · Jun 102 · Jul 225 · Aug 101 · Sep 15 · Oct 43 · Nov 20 · Dec 58 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest floods and flash floods in Vermont?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-08-28 | Hurricane Irene · Flash FloodBenson, Rutland County One named storm filed by several offices: 17 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. Tropical Storm Irene moved across southeast New York and southwest New England during the morning hours of August 28th and then proceeded to track north along the Connecticut River Valley in Vermont during the afternoon and evening. Strong to damaging winds in excess of 60 mph was observed within several miles of Lake ... | 3 | 0 | $1.8B | |
| 2024-07-10 | Flash FloodSouth Peacham, Caledonia County One storm episode: 8 records in 3 places, 2024-07-10 to 2024-07-11; the totals are the episode's. The remnants of TS Beryl combined with deep tropical moisture and a stationary front draped across the region produced multiple rounds of heavy showers and storms. This led to numerous reports of flash flooding, some locally severe across a roughly 50 mile swath through Chittenden, Washington, Lamoille, Caledonia, ... | 3 | 0 | $9.4M | |
| 1996-01-19 | FloodFranklin County · forecast zone Western Franklin One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. A strong storm system moved into the Great Lakes on Thursday (1/18/96) and then moved into Canada thereafter on Friday (1/19/96) and Saturday (1/20/96). The circulation associated with this storm resulted in above normal temperatures, strong winds and flooding due to snow melt and rainfall.Two deaths were attributed ... | 2 | 0 | $4.5M | |
| 2023-07-11 | Flash FloodMontpelier Jct, Washington County One storm episode: 5 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. Multiple rounds of heavy rainfall affected Vermont from late afternoon of the 9th through the early morning hours on the 11th. During the roughly 36-hour period, 4 to as much as 9 inches of rain fell across much of the Green Mountains, leading to devastating flash and riverine flooding. Major river flooding was ... | 2 | 0 | $132M | |
| 2011-04-11 | FloodNorth Underhill, Chittenden County Runoff from heavy rainfall and snowmelt caused flooding in Chittenden County. The Browns River left its banks, flooding portions of Routes 15 and 128 in Jericho and Essex. The Winooski River flooded as well, and the gage at Essex Junction VT exceeded its flood stage of 15 feet at 19:21 EST on 4/11, and crested at ... | 1 | 0 | $39K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest floods and flash floods in Vermont
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-08-28 | Hurricane Irene · Flash FloodBenson, Rutland County One named storm filed by several offices: 17 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 3 | 0 | $1.8B | |
| 2023-07-11 | Flash FloodMontpelier Jct, Washington County One storm episode: 5 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 2 | 0 | $132M | |
| 1997-07-15 | Flash FloodCountywide, Franklin County | 0 | 0 | $15M | |
| 2011-05-26 | Flash FloodMontpelier Jct, Washington County One storm episode: 6 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $13M | |
| 2011-05-01 | Lakeshore FloodChittenden County · forecast zone Western Chittenden One storm episode: 5 records in 5 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $13M | |
| 1998-06-27 | Flash FloodCountywide, Addison County | 0 | 0 | $10.0M | |
| 1998-06-27 | Flash FloodCountywide, Washington County | 0 | 0 | $9.4M | |
| 2024-07-10 | Flash FloodSouth Peacham, Caledonia County One storm episode: 8 records in 3 places, 2024-07-10 to 2024-07-11; the totals are the episode's. | 3 | 0 | $9.4M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are floods and flash floods becoming more frequent in Vermont?
Vermont's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Vermont | United States | Vermont's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 151 | 20,986 | 0.72% |
| 2000s | 267 | 54,913 | 0.49% |
| 2010s | 316 | 68,322 | 0.46% |
| 2020-26 | 177 | 43,563 | 0.41% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent floods and flash floods in Vermont
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-15 | Flash FloodNorth Clarendon, Rutland County | 0 | 0 | $75K | |
| 2026-06-10 | Flash FloodWolcott, Lamoille County | 0 | 0 | $50K | |
| 2026-06-10 | Flash FloodHardwick, Caledonia County | 0 | 0 | $25K | |
| 2025-07-10 | Flash FloodEast Haven, Essex County | 0 | 0 | $125K | |
| 2025-07-10 | Flash FloodEast Granville, Caledonia County | 0 | 0 | $125K | |
| 2025-07-10 | Flash FloodVergennes, Addison County | 0 | 0 | $50K | |
| 2025-07-10 | Flash FloodSutton, Caledonia County | 0 | 0 | $1.0M | |
| 2025-06-06 | Flash FloodSaxtons River, Windham County | 0 | 0 | $1K | |
| 2025-06-06 | FloodChester Depot, Windsor County | 0 | 0 | $25K | |
| 2025-06-06 | FloodGreenbush, Windsor County | 0 | 0 | $25K | |
| 2025-05-17 | Flash FloodWhite River Jct, Windsor County | 0 | 0 | $250K | |
| 2025-05-17 | Flash FloodCambridge, Lamoille County | 0 | 0 | $75K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for floods and flash floods in Vermont
FEMA has declared 47 disasters in Vermont for floods and flash floods, counting its incident type and declarations that name flood in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 46 were major disasters, the latest on September 26, 2024.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-09-26 | DR-4826 | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 3 |
| 2024-09-11 | DR-4816 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 1 |
| 2024-08-20 | DR-4810 | Severe Storm, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 8 |
| 2024-03-02 | DR-4762 | Severe Storm and Flooding | 7 |
| 2023-10-06 | DR-4744 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 1 |
| 2023-07-14 | DR-4720 | Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides | 14 |
| 2023-07-10 | EM-3595 | Flooding | 14 |
| 2023-03-20 | DR-4695 | Severe Storm and Flooding | 8 |
| 2021-09-29 | DR-4621 | Severe Storm and Flooding | 2 |
| 2020-01-17 | DR-4474 | Severe Storm and Flooding | 8 |
| 2019-06-14 | DR-4445 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 6 |
| 2018-07-30 | DR-4380 | Severe Storm and Flooding | 5 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Chittenden County: the county's whole recordThe Vermont county with the most floods and flash floods per square mile
- Floods across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in VermontTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Winter storms in Vermont4,758 records
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Vermont2,342 records
- High wind and dust storms in Vermont1,086 records