Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Gilboa

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
Gilboa Town Hall, Gilboa, New YorkPhoto: Tyler A. McNeil · CC BY-SA 4.0
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Gilboa · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Gilboa than in 62% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gilboa gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (94%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 1980.

River and rain flooding 94%Hurricanes 2%Tornadoes 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 62%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 62% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
94% of expected building damage
Flood claims
7
paid since 1980 · $101K
Flooded more than once
1
properties
Disasters paid out here
14
of 20 declared for Schoharie County
By hazard

What Gilboa 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

94%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Winter storms Hail Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning Avalanches top 1%
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingTsunamisVolcanic 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 Gilboa’s grade

River and rain flooding is 94% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gilboa, and Gilboa’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Gilboa sits
Gilboa
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ higher expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding94%Everything else6%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $573K a year in losses across Gilboa: $521K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Gilboa’s 1,111 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Broome town (863 residents) and Conesville town (687 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 Gilboa flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 1980

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gilboa, from FEMA’s records: 7.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1980: 1 claim1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 1 claim1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 1 claim1996: 4 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: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198019871996
19802026
7
paid claims since 1980
$101K
paid to owners
1
homes flooded more than once
$14K
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

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

Insurance rates: Schoharie County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
19flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
2flood-prone homes bought out and moved
Disasters

14 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Gilboa

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

  1. 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$21K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  2. 2011Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee6 households applied for aid$57K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  3. 2011Hurricane Irene116 households applied for aid$231K aid approved$692K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  4. 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$148K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  5. 2008Severe Winter Storm$119K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  6. 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$23K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
Show all 14
  1. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding3 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
  2. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding2 households applied for aid$233K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  3. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan$93K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  4. 2004Severe Storms and Flooding$46K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  5. 2003Snow$9K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  6. 2002Snowstorms$18K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  7. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$109K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
  8. 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$13K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in GilboaSchoharie County only

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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Gilboa archive →
Next door

Gilboa and its neighbors

Gilboa has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Broome: not gradedBlenheim: not gradedConesville: not gradedFulton: hazard risk C−BroomeBlenheimConesvilleFultonGilboa
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
GilboaC+more damage than 62%river and rain flooding7
FultonC−more damage than 78%river and rain flooding25
Broome—773 residents; we grade 1,000+
Blenheim—305 residents; we grade 1,000+
Conesville—750 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 Gilboa 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 Gilboa

Is Gilboa at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gilboa has higher expected damage per building than 62% 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 Gilboa flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Gilboa since 1980, $101K in all, or 7.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.

Is Gilboa 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 Gilboa?

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

By FEMA money that reached Gilboa, Hurricane Irene (2011): 116 households applied for aid, $231K approved, and $692K to the Town of Gilboa for repairs.

Is Gilboa at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (94%), and Gilboa’s rate for it is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gilboa.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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