Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Franklin

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
New Stone HallNew Stone Hall · Photo: Doug Kerr from Upstate New York · CC BY-SA 2.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Franklin · FEMA

FEMA puts Franklin’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Franklin 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 5 claims here since 1985.

River and rain flooding 95%Hurricanes 2%Tornadoes 1%

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
5
paid since 1985 · $58K
Flooded more than once
1
properties
Disasters paid out here
6
of 30 declared for Delaware County
By hazard

What Franklin 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 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Strong wind Earthquakes Winter storms Ice storms Hail Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides 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 Franklin’s grade

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

Where Franklin sits
Franklin
Least damageMiddleMost damage

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

All of Franklin’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 $1.3M a year in losses across Franklin: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Franklin’s 2,288 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Franklin village (258 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 Franklin flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 1985

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Franklin, from FEMA’s records: 3.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 50% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1985: 1 claim1986: 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: 2 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 1 claim2013: 1 claim2014: 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 claims198520062012
19852026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Gloria1 claim · $6K
  • Hurricane Sandy1 claim · $29K
5
paid claims since 1985
$58K
paid to owners
1
homes flooded more than once
$12K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Delaware County.
Disasters

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Franklin

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

  1. 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$21K to the Town of Franklin for repairs
  2. 2014Severe Storms and Flooding$104K to the Town of Franklin for repairs
  3. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$3.5M to the Town of Franklin for repairs
  4. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$3.9M to the Town of Franklin for repairs
  5. 2003Snow$11K to the Town of Franklin for repairs
  6. 2002Snowstorms$25K to the Town of Franklin for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in FranklinDelaware County only

Delaware County has had 30 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe 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 Franklin after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Franklin archive →
Next door

Franklin and its neighbors

Franklin is 5th of the 7 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Otego: hazard risk DSidney: hazard risk CMeredith: hazard risk CWalton: hazard risk DHamden: hazard risk COneonta: hazard risk C+OtegoSidneyMeredithWaltonHamdenOneontaFranklin
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
OneontaC+more damage than 61%river and rain flooding32
SidneyCmore damage than 73%river and rain flooding31
MeredithCmore damage than 74%river and rain flooding3
HamdenCmore damage than 75%river and rain flooding8
FranklinC−more damage than 80%river and rain flooding5
WaltonDmore damage than 89%river and rain flooding23
OtegoDmore damage than 89%river and rain flooding8

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 Franklin 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 Franklin

Is Franklin at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Franklin 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 Franklin flood?

Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Franklin since 1985, $58K in all, or 3.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 50% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Gloria (1).

Is Franklin 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 Delaware County, 23% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Franklin?

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

By FEMA money that reached Franklin, Severe Storms and Flooding (2006): $3.9M to the Town of Franklin for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Gloria: 1 paid, $6K.

Is Franklin at risk from river and rain flooding?

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

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Franklin.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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