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A+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Hopewell · FEMA

FEMA puts Hopewell’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hopewell gets an A+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, #25 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 1984.

River and rain flooding 88%Earthquakes 3%Strong wind 3%

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 98%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#25 of 758 in New York
Hazard risk
A+#25 of 758
in New York · lower than 98% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
88% of expected building damage
Flood claims
7
paid since 1984 · $135K
Disasters paid out here
4
of 14 declared for Ontario County
By hazard

What Hopewell 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

88%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 83% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Tornadoes Hurricanes Hail Wildfire Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts drought at 10% of Hopewell’s expected losses. Drought does 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 Hopewell’s grade

River and rain flooding is 88% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hopewell, and Hopewell’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 83% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Hopewell sits
Hopewell
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A+ #25 of 758 in New York; lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding88%Everything else12%

The typical New York town has lower expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, Hopewell has less expected damage per building than 97% of New York towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $874K a year in losses across Hopewell: $670K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Hopewell’s 3,931 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. 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 Hopewell flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 1984

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Hopewell, from FEMA’s records: 4.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 1 claim1988: 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: 3 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 2 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 claims198420052007
19842026
Biggest named events
  • The Torrential rain3 claims · $67K
  • The April 2007 nor’easter2 claims · $62K
7
paid claims since 1984
$135K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$19K
average claim
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Ontario County.
Disasters

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Hopewell

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

  1. 2023Severe Storms and Flooding$384K to the Town of Hopewell for repairs
  2. 2011Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds$3K to the Town of Hopewell for repairs
  3. 2003Ice Storm$20K to the Town of Hopewell for repairs
  4. 1999Snow$7K to the Town of Hopewell for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in HopewellOntario County only

Ontario County has had 14 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter 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 Hopewell after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Hopewell archive →
Next door

Hopewell and its neighbors

Hopewell has the lowest expected damage per building of the 4 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Manchester: hazard risk B+Phelps: hazard risk ACanandaigua: not gradedSeneca: hazard risk AManchesterPhelpsCanandaiguaSenecaHopewell
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
HopewellA+less damage than 98%river and rain flooding7
PhelpsAless damage than 90%river and rain flooding4
SenecaAless damage than 86%river and rain flooding3
ManchesterB+less damage than 67%river and rain flooding1
Canandaigua—not graded yet

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 Hopewell 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 Hopewell

Is Hopewell at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hopewell has lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk, #25 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). 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 Hopewell flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Hopewell since 1984, $135K in all, or 4.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 56% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Torrential rain (3).

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

How much is flood insurance in Hopewell?

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

By FEMA money that reached Hopewell, Severe Storms and Flooding (2023): $384K to the Town of Hopewell for repairs. By flood claims, Torrential rain: 3 paid, $67K.

Is Hopewell at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (88%), and Hopewell’s rate for it is lower than 83% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hopewell.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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