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Essex New YorkPhoto: Robert Justin Close · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Essex · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Essex

Essex isn’t graded for hazard risk: Essex has 710 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1979.

Flood claims
4
paid since 1979 · $35K
Disasters paid out here
5
of 19 declared for Essex County
By hazard

What Essex 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

91%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Hurricanes Strong wind Ice storms Tornadoes Winter storms Lightning Wildfire 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 avalanches at 30% of Essex’s expected losses. Avalanches 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.
Flood insurance claims

Does Essex flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1979

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Essex, from FEMA’s records.

Paid flood claims, by year
1979: 1 claim1980: 0 claims1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 2 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: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 1 claim2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims197919922023
19792026
Biggest named events
  • The December nor’easter1 claim · $18K
4
paid claims since 1979
$35K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$9K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Essex County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1flood-prone property bought out and cleared
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Essex

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

  1. 2024Severe Storm, Tornadoes, and Flooding$152K to the Town of Essex for repairs
  2. 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$6K to the Town of Essex for repairs
  3. 2011Hurricane Irene12 households applied for aid$100K aid approved$8K to the Town of Essex for repairs
  4. 2011Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds$20K to the Town of Essex for repairs
  5. 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$6K to the Town of Essex for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in EssexEssex County only

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

Add to the Essex archive →
Next door

Essex and its neighbors

How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Westport: hazard risk CCharlotte: hazard risk A−Willsboro: hazard risk CLewis: hazard risk CWestportCharlotteWillsboroLewisEssex
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
CharlotteA−less damage than 83%river and rain flooding3
LewisCmore damage than 65%river and rain flooding3
WillsboroCmore damage than 70%river and rain flooding10
WestportCmore damage than 72%river and rain flooding11

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 Essex 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 Essex

Does Essex flood?

Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Essex since 1979, $35K in all. The most claims came from December Nor'easter (1).

Is Essex 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 Essex County, 0.7% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Essex?

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

By FEMA money that reached Essex, Severe Storm, Tornadoes, and Flooding (2024): $152K to the Town of Essex for repairs. By flood claims, December Nor'easter: 1 paid, $18K.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Essex.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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