Photo: Tyler A. McNeil · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Esperance faces more hazard damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Esperance gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). Flood insurance has paid 87 claims here since 1979.
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 stands out about Esperance’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Esperance 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 Esperance’s grade
River and rain flooding is 94% of the building damage FEMA expects in Esperance, and Esperance’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Esperance’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $780K a year in losses across Esperance: $650K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Esperance flood? Sometimes: 87 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Esperance, from FEMA’s records: 92.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Irene32 claims · $3.7M
- The Torrential rain5 claims · $103K
- The April 2007 nor’easter1 claim · $14K
Esperance is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 8) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Schoharie County.12 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Esperance
Disasters that paid out in Esperance itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Esperance), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$4K to the Town of Esperance for repairs
- 2011Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee$39K to the Town of Esperance for repairs
- 2011Hurricane Irene$566K to the Town of Esperance for repairs32 flood claims paid for it, $3.7M
- 2008Severe Winter Storm$18K to the Town of Esperance for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$27K to the Town of Esperance for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$31K to the Town of Esperance for repairs
Show all 12
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$7K to the Town of Esperance for repairs6 flood claims paid that year
- 2004Severe Storms and Flooding$1K to the Town of Esperance for repairs
- 2003Snow$887 to the Town of Esperance for repairs
- 2002Snowstorms$3K to the Town of Esperance for repairs
- 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$25K to the Town of Esperance for repairs
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$6K to the Town of Esperance for repairs
Schoharie County has had 20 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.
Old photos of Esperance after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Esperance archive →Esperance and its neighbors
Esperance is 5th 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duanesburg | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 7 |
| Carlisle | B+less damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Charleston | Bless damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| Schoharie | Cmore damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | 23 |
| Esperance | Cmore damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | 87 |
| Esperance | — | 248 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.
Get ready for what Esperance 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.
- Esperance residents get 10% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Esperance
Is Esperance at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Esperance has higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). 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 Esperance flood?
Flood insurance has paid 87 claims in Esperance since 1979, $4.5M in all, or 92.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 96% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Irene (32).
Is Esperance 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 Schoharie County, 29% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Esperance?
Esperance is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 8), which takes 10% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Esperance?
By FEMA money that reached Esperance, Hurricane Irene (2011): $566K to the Town of Esperance for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irene: 32 paid, $3.7M.
Is Esperance at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (94%), and Esperance’s rate for it is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Esperance.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Esperance’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.