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C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Canajoharie · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Canajoharie faces more hazard damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Canajoharie gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 1981.

River and rain flooding 95%Hurricanes 2%

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

more than 80%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in New York · higher than 80% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
95% of expected building damage
Flood claims
3
paid since 1981 · $404K
Disasters paid out here
9
of 19 declared for Montgomery County
By hazard

What Canajoharie 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

95%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Landslides top 2% Wildfire Winter storms Hail Cold waves Heat waves Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Canajoharie’s grade

River and rain flooding is 95% of the building damage FEMA expects in Canajoharie, and Canajoharie’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Canajoharie sits
Canajoharie
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Canajoharie’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding95%Everything else5%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.0M a year in losses across Canajoharie: $900K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Canajoharie’s 2,037 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Canajoharie town (3,660 residents) and Ames village (138 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Canajoharie flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 1981

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Canajoharie, from FEMA’s records: 3.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 53% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1981: 1 claim1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 1 claim2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198120062011
19812026
Biggest named events
  • Tropical Storm Lee1 claim · $13K
3
paid claims since 1981
$404K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$135K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Canajoharie isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Montgomery County.
Disasters

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Canajoharie

Disasters that paid out in Canajoharie itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Canajoharie), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$89K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
  2. 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$18K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
  3. 2011Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee$25K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $13K
  4. 2011Hurricane Irene7 households applied for aid$8K aid approved$9K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
  5. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$2K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
  6. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding82 households applied for aid$120K aid approved$2.8M to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
Show all 9
  1. 2003Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes3 households applied for aid$2K aid approved$6K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
  2. 2002Snowstorms$16K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
  3. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$2K to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in CanajoharieMontgomery County only

Montgomery County has had 19 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.

Were you here?

Old photos of Canajoharie after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Canajoharie archive →
Next door

Canajoharie and its neighbors

Canajoharie is 3rd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Palatine Bridge: not gradedCanajoharie: hazard risk C−Palatine: hazard risk B−Palatine BridgeCanajohariePalatineCanajoharie
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
PalatineB−less damage than 51%river and rain flooding2
CanajoharieC−more damage than 80%river and rain flooding6
CanajoharieC−more damage than 80%river and rain flooding3
Palatine Bridge—727 residents; we grade 1,000+

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Canajoharie faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Canajoharie

Is Canajoharie at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Canajoharie has higher expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). 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 Canajoharie flood?

Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Canajoharie since 1981, $404K in all, or 3.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 53% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (1).

Is Canajoharie 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 Montgomery County, 23% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Canajoharie?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Canajoharie’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 Canajoharie?

By FEMA money that reached Canajoharie, Severe Storms and Flooding (2006): 82 households applied for aid, $120K approved, and $2.8M to the Village of Canajoharie for repairs. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 1 paid, $13K.

Is Canajoharie at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (95%), and Canajoharie’s rate for it is in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Canajoharie.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Canajoharie’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.