Mentz Church · Photo: bluemars21 · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Montezuma faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Montezuma gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 1993.
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
What Montezuma 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
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.
What’s behind Montezuma’s grade
River and rain flooding is 93% of the building damage FEMA expects in Montezuma, and Montezuma’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts.
B− higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Montezuma’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $341K a year in losses across Montezuma: $291K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Montezuma flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 1993
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Montezuma, from FEMA’s records: 10.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 74% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Montezuma isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Cayuga County.The storms Montezuma remembers
None of the 13 disasters declared for Cayuga County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Montezuma itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19933 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Blizzard, declared for Cayuga County
- 19961 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Cayuga County
- 20071 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Cayuga County has had 13 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Old photos of Montezuma after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Montezuma archive →Montezuma and its neighbors
Montezuma is 4th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aurelius | A−less damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Savannah | A−less damage than 79% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Throop | B−more damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Montezuma | B−more damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Conquest | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Mentz | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Tyre | — | 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.
Get ready for what Montezuma faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Montezuma
Is Montezuma at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Montezuma has higher expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). 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 Montezuma flood?
Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Montezuma since 1993, $18K in all, or 10.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 74% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Montezuma 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 Cayuga County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Montezuma?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Montezuma’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Montezuma at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (93%), and Montezuma’s rate for it is higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Montezuma.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Montezuma’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.