Major's Inn and Gilbert Block · Photo: Doug Kerr from Albany, New York, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Butternuts than in 81% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Butternuts gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (97%). Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 2006.
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 Butternuts 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 Butternuts’ grade
River and rain flooding is 97% of the building damage FEMA expects in Butternuts, and Butternuts’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.
C− higher expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Butternuts’ residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Butternuts: $881K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Butternuts flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 2006
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Butternuts, from FEMA’s records: 5.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 61% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Lee1 claim · $4K
Butternuts isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Otsego County.8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Butternuts
Disasters that paid out in Butternuts itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Butternuts), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$126K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs
- 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$12K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs
- 2014Severe Storms and Flooding$90K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs
- 2011Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee$109K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $4K
- 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$113K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs
- 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$396K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs
Show all 8
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$25K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs
- 2002Snowstorms$14K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs
Otsego County has had 20 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Old photos of Butternuts after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Butternuts archive →Butternuts and its neighbors
Butternuts is 5th of the 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Berlin | C−more damage than 79% | river and rain flooding | 7 |
| Norwich | C−more damage than 79% | river and rain flooding | 18 |
| Unadilla | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 34 |
| Morris | C−more damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Butternuts | C−more damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Guilford | C−more damage than 82% | river and rain flooding | 17 |
| Otego | Dmore damage than 89% | river and rain flooding | 8 |
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 Butternuts 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 Butternuts
Is Butternuts at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Butternuts has higher expected damage per building than 81% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (97%). 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.
Does Butternuts flood?
Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Butternuts since 2006, $38K in all, or 5.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 61% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (1).
Is Butternuts 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 Otsego County, 18% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Butternuts?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Butternuts’ 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 Butternuts?
By FEMA money that reached Butternuts, Severe Storms and Flooding (2006): $396K to the Town of Butternuts for repairs. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 1 paid, $4K.
Is Butternuts at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (97%), and Butternuts’ rate for it is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Butternuts.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Butternuts’ 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.