Photo: Bill Marrs · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Unity than in 67% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Unity gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (89%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What Unity faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Unity’s grade
River and rain flooding is 89% of the building damage FEMA expects in Unity, and Unity’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 3%, at a rate in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Unity’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $620K a year in losses across Unity: $526K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Unity flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Unity. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Unity isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Sullivan County.10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Unity
Disasters that paid out in Unity itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Unity), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2023Severe Storms and Flooding$263K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2021Severe Storm and Flooding$867K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2013Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$6K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2011Tropical Storm Irene$83K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Flooding$51K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$439K to the Town of Unity for repairs
Show all 10
- 2005Record Snow$3K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2005Record Snow$5K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2005Record And/or Near Record Snow$3K to the Town of Unity for repairs
- 2003Snow$3K to the Town of Unity for repairs
Sullivan County has had 27 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Unity after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Unity archive →Unity and its neighbors
Unity is 3rd of the 5 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlestown | B−more damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Claremont | Cmore damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 23 |
| Unity | Cmore damage than 67% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Lempster | Cmore damage than 67% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Newport | Dmore damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Acworth | — | 851 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Goshen | — | not graded yet | |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Unity faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Unity
Is Unity at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Unity has higher expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (89%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Unity in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Sullivan County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Unity?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Unity’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Unity?
By FEMA money that reached Unity, Severe Storm and Flooding (2021): $867K to the Town of Unity for repairs.
Is Unity at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (89%), and Unity’s rate for it is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Unity.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Unity’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.