Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Champion

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
AHazard risk
Natural hazards in Champion · FEMA

FEMA puts Champion’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 89% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Champion gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns, #181 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1998.

River and rain flooding 87%Strong wind 4%Earthquakes 4%

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

less than 89%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#181 of 758 in New York
Hazard risk
A#181 of 758
in New York · lower than 89% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
87% of expected building damage
Flood claims
2
paid since 1998 · $22K
Disasters paid out here
3
of 15 declared for Jefferson County
By hazard

What Champion 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

87%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 64% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Earthquakes Ice storms Tornadoes Hurricanes Winter storms Wildfire Lightning Hail Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 9% of Champion’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Champion’s grade

River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Champion, and Champion’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 64% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Champion sits
Champion
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A #181 of 758 in New York; lower expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Champion’s residents live in 4 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding87%Strong wind4%Earthquakes4%Everything else4%

The typical New York town has lower expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, Champion has less expected damage per building than 76% of New York towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $803K a year in losses across Champion: $653K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A small-area figure. Champion covers 4 census tracts, combined by where residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Champion flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1998

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Champion, from FEMA’s records: 1.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 79% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1998: 1 claim1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 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 claims19982011
19982026
2
paid claims since 1998
$22K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$11K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Jefferson County.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Champion

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

  1. 2024Remnants of Tropical Storm Debby$17K to the Town of Champion for repairs
  2. 2014Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding$18K to the Town of Champion for repairs
  3. 1999Snow$4K to the Town of Champion for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ChampionJefferson County only

Jefferson County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then floods. 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 Champion after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Champion archive →
Next door

Champion and its neighbors

Champion is 3rd of the 7 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Wilna: hazard risk C−Fort Drum: not gradedLe Ray: hazard risk AGreat Bend: not gradedCarthage: hazard risk C−Denmark: hazard risk B+Deferiet: not gradedWest Carthage: hazard risk ARutland: hazard risk A−Herrings: not gradedWilnaFort DrumLe RayGreat BendCarthageDenmarkDeferietWest CarthageRutlandHerringsChampion
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Le RayAless damage than 91%river and rain flooding—
West CarthageAless damage than 89%river and rain flooding2
ChampionAless damage than 89%river and rain flooding2
RutlandA−less damage than 85%river and rain flooding1
DenmarkB+less damage than 66%river and rain flooding8
WilnaC−more damage than 77%river and rain flooding12
CarthageC−more damage than 78%river and rain flooding17
Fort Drum—a Census area inside a town; graded with the town
Great Bend—938 residents; we grade 1,000+
Deferiet—366 residents; we grade 1,000+
Herrings—0 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 Champion 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 Champion

Is Champion at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Champion has lower expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #181 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Champion flood?

Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Champion since 1998, $22K in all, or 1.0 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 79% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Champion 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 Jefferson County, 0.6% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Champion?

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

By FEMA money that reached Champion, Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding (2014): $18K to the Town of Champion for repairs.

Is Champion at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Champion’s rate for it is lower than 64% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Champion.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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