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Kenyon ResidencesKenyon Residences · Photo: ErixS · CC BY-SA 3.0
DHazard risk
Natural hazards in Laurens · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Laurens than in 87% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Laurens gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (98%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 2003.

River and rain flooding 98%

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 87%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
D
in New York · higher than 87% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
98% of expected building damage
Flood claims
2
paid since 2003 · $5K
Disasters paid out here
7
of 20 declared for Otsego County
By hazard

What Laurens 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

98%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Hurricanes Strong wind Earthquakes Ice storms Winter storms Hail Wildfire 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 cold waves at 13% of Laurens’ 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 Laurens’ grade

River and rain flooding is 98% of the building damage FEMA expects in Laurens, and Laurens’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Laurens sits
Laurens
Least damageMiddleMost damage

D higher expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding98%Everything else2%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.4M a year in losses across Laurens: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Laurens’ 2,311 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Laurens village (185 residents) and Mount Vision CDP (171 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 Laurens flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 2003

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Laurens, from FEMA’s records: 1.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 65% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2003: 1 claim2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 1 claim2007: 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 claims20032006
20032026
2
paid claims since 2003
$5K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$3K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Otsego County.
Disasters

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Laurens

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

  1. 2011Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee$422K to the Town of Laurens for repairs
  2. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$64K to the Town of Laurens for repairs
  3. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$1.4M to the Town of Laurens for repairs
  4. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$16K to the Town of Laurens for repairs
  5. 2003Ice Storm$5K to the Town of Laurens for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
  6. 2002Snowstorms$14K to the Town of Laurens for repairs
Show all 7
  1. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$15K to the Town of Laurens for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in LaurensOtsego County only

Otsego County has had 20 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 Laurens after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Laurens archive →
Next door

Laurens and its neighbors

Laurens is 5th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

New Lisbon: hazard risk C+Oneonta: hazard risk C+Morris: hazard risk C−Milford: hazard risk C−Otego: hazard risk DNew LisbonOneontaMorrisMilfordOtegoLaurens
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
OneontaC+more damage than 61%river and rain flooding32
New LisbonC+more damage than 64%river and rain flooding1
MorrisC−more damage than 81%river and rain flooding—
MilfordC−more damage than 85%river and rain flooding12
LaurensDmore damage than 87%river and rain flooding2
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 Laurens 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 Laurens

Is Laurens at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Laurens has higher expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (98%). 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 Laurens flood?

Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Laurens since 2003, $5K in all, or 1.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 65% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is Laurens 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 Otsego County, 18% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Laurens?

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

By FEMA money that reached Laurens, Severe Storms and Flooding (2006): $1.4M to the Town of Laurens for repairs.

Is Laurens at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (98%), and Laurens’ rate for it is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Laurens.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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