Westfield River Flood History and How to Check Your Flood Risk

The Westfield River

The river runs 78.1 miles from its North Branch source in Savoy, in the Berkshires, to the Connecticut River at Agawam, across from Springfield. Its main stem forms the boundary between West Springfield and Agawam before it ends. In Westfield, it divides the city into the North Side and the South Side, and the original settlement grew up between the Westfield River and the Little River. Parts of the watershed carry a National Wild and Scenic River designation, dated November 2, 1993.

Floods that shaped the valley

1936

A flood on the Westfield and Connecticut rivers led to construction of the Knightville Dam in Huntington, built by the Army Corps of Engineers from August 1939 to December 1941. The dam is used only for flood control, doesn't normally hold a reservoir, and is credited with averting hundreds of millions of dollars in downstream damage. Downriver in West Springfield, the 1936 flood displaced about 8,000 of the town's 17,000 residents.

1955

In August 1955, Hurricane Connie brought six to eight inches of rain, and Hurricane Diane followed right behind it. Rain fell for about 30 hours on August 18 and 19. According to a 2015 retrospective in The Reminder, the Little River flooded most of downtown Westfield, East Main Street went under water, and on the North Side a wall of water came off Notre Dame Street. The Westfield River dikes held everywhere except Meadow Street, where holes had been cut for a sewer pumping station. About 100 buildings were destroyed and two people died. Upriver at Woronoco, in Russell, the tracks washed out and a Lake Shore Limited train derailed. Westfield recorded 78 inches of rain that year.

More recent reminders

An August 2014 downpour caused localized flooding on Mainline Drive and Court Street, as The Westfield News reported. And in February 2025, heavy rain and snow flooded streets and basements around the region after snow and ice blocked storm drains.

How to check your flood risk

1. Go to FEMA's Flood Map Service Center and search your address.
2. Note your flood zone. Inland high-risk zones start with the letter A; moderate- and lower-risk areas are usually shown as X.
3. Remember that lower-risk doesn't mean no risk. Heavy rain floods basements far from any river.
4. Ask your insurance agent about flood coverage and its cost for your address.

What flood insurance covers

FEMA notes that homeowners and renters insurance typically don't cover flood damage. Flood coverage comes from a separate policy, for example through the National Flood Insurance Program, which can insure a single-family home for up to $250,000 and its contents for up to $100,000. Most new policies take 30 days to start. See our water damage insurance guide.

Getting ready

• Photograph your rooms and belongings now, so you have a record before anything happens.
• Keep valuables and documents off the basement floor.
• Test your sump pump and consider a battery backup.
• Know how to shut off the electricity and gas safely.
• Save the numbers you'll need: your insurer, a plumber and a restoration company.

If water does get in, see storm and flood damage cleanup and our main page on water damage restoration in Westfield, Massachusetts.

Sources

• Westfield, Massachusetts (Wikipedia: 2020 Census population, geography, Westfield-Barnes Regional Airport climate normals, 1981–2010)
• Westfield River (Wikipedia: course, Knightville Dam, confluence at Agawam)
• “1955 flood remembered” (The Reminder, Westfield, 2015)
• West Springfield, Massachusetts (Wikipedia)
• “Westfield recovers from flooding” (The Westfield News, August 2014)
• “Streets and homes throughout region flooded from heavy rain and snow” (WWLP 22News, February 2025)
• FEMA, National Flood Insurance Program (flood coverage, 30-day waiting period, coverage limits)
• FEMA Flood Map Service Center (look up flood zones by address)