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First Presbyterian Church ComplexFirst Presbyterian Church Complex · Photo: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Gouverneur · FEMA

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

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gouverneur gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns, #429 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1998.

River and rain flooding 90%Earthquakes 6%Ice storms 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

less than 62%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#429 of 758 in New York
Hazard risk
B#429 of 758
in New York · lower than 62% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
90% of expected building damage
Flood claims
2
paid since 1998 · $27K
Disasters paid out here
2
of 13 declared for St. Lawrence County
By hazard

What Gouverneur 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

90%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Earthquakes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Ice storms Strong wind Hurricanes Tornadoes Winter storms Lightning Hail Wildfire 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 15% of Gouverneur’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 Gouverneur’s grade

River and rain flooding is 90% of the building damage FEMA expects in Gouverneur, and Gouverneur’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 6% (higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Gouverneur sits
Gouverneur
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B #429 of 758 in New York; lower expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding90%Earthquakes6%Everything else4%

The typical New York town has lower expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, Gouverneur has more expected damage per building than 57% of New York towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.1M a year in losses across Gouverneur: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Gouverneur’s 6,551 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Gouverneur village (3,526 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 Gouverneur flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1998

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Gouverneur, from FEMA’s records: 0.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 85% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1998: 1 claim1999: 1 claim2000: 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 claims19981999
19982026
2
paid claims since 1998
$27K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$14K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: St. Lawrence County.
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Gouverneur

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

  1. 2024Remnants of Tropical Storm Debby$97K to the Town of Gouverneur for repairs
  2. 1999Snow$8K to the Town of Gouverneur for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in GouverneurSt. Lawrence County only

St. Lawrence County has had 13 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 Gouverneur after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Gouverneur archive →
Next door

Gouverneur and its neighbors

Gouverneur is 4th of the 5 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Macomb: not gradedRossie: not gradedDe Kalb: hazard risk A−Fowler: hazard risk C+Hermon: hazard risk A−Hailesboro: not gradedDe Peyster: hazard risk A−MacombRossieDe KalbFowlerHermonHailesboroDe PeysterGouverneur
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
De KalbA−less damage than 83%river and rain flooding—
HermonA−less damage than 83%river and rain flooding1
De PeysterA−less damage than 83%river and rain flooding—
GouverneurBless damage than 62%river and rain flooding2
FowlerC+more damage than 59%river and rain flooding4
Macomb—752 residents; we grade 1,000+
Rossie—785 residents; we grade 1,000+
Hailesboro—583 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 Gouverneur 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 ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
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 Gouverneur

Is Gouverneur at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Gouverneur has lower expected damage per building than 62% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #429 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (90%) and earthquakes (6%). 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 Gouverneur flood?

Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Gouverneur since 1998, $27K in all, or 0.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 85% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Gouverneur 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 St. Lawrence County, 0.2% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.

How much is flood insurance in Gouverneur?

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

By FEMA money that reached Gouverneur, Remnants of Tropical Storm Debby (2024): $97K to the Town of Gouverneur for repairs.

Is Gouverneur at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (90%), and Gouverneur’s rate for it is higher than 64% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Gouverneur.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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