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C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in New Lisbon · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, New Lisbon faces more hazard damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, New Lisbon gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (96%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2006.

River and rain flooding 96%Tornadoes 1%Hurricanes 1%

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 64%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 64% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
96% of expected building damage
Flood claims
1
paid since 2006 · $30K
Disasters paid out here
9
of 20 declared for Otsego County
By hazard

What New Lisbon 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

96%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Hurricanes Strong wind Earthquakes Ice storms 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 cold waves at 17% of New Lisbon’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 New Lisbon’s grade

River and rain flooding is 96% of the building damage FEMA expects in New Lisbon, and New Lisbon’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts.

Where New Lisbon sits
New Lisbon
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding96%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $497K a year in losses across New Lisbon: $380K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of New Lisbon’s 1,084 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Pittsfield town (1,312 residents) and Burlington town (1,045 residents) and Burlington Flats CDP (143 residents) and Garrattsville CDP (120 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 New Lisbon flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 2006

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in New Lisbon, from FEMA’s records: 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2006: 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 claims2006
20062026
1
paid claims since 2006
$30K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$30K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

New Lisbon 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

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to New Lisbon

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

  1. 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$13K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
  2. 2013Severe Storms and Flooding$62K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
  3. 2011Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee3 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
  4. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$26K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
  5. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding3 households applied for aid$7K aid approved$176K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
  6. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$15K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
Show all 9
  1. 2003Ice Storm$7K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
  2. 2002Snowstorms$10K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
  3. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$95K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in New LisbonOtsego 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 New Lisbon after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the New Lisbon archive →
Next door

New Lisbon and its neighbors

New Lisbon is 3rd of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Laurens: hazard risk DPittsfield: hazard risk C+Burlington: hazard risk C+Morris: hazard risk C−Hartwick: hazard risk C−LaurensPittsfieldBurlingtonMorrisHartwickNew Lisbon
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
PittsfieldC+more damage than 64%river and rain flooding1
BurlingtonC+more damage than 64%river and rain flooding—
New LisbonC+more damage than 64%river and rain flooding1
HartwickC−more damage than 78%river and rain flooding1
MorrisC−more damage than 81%river and rain flooding—
LaurensDmore damage than 87%river and rain flooding2

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 New Lisbon 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 New Lisbon

Is New Lisbon at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, New Lisbon has higher expected damage per building than 64% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (96%). 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 New Lisbon flood?

Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in New Lisbon since 2006, $30K in all, or 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Is New Lisbon 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 New Lisbon?

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

By FEMA money that reached New Lisbon, Severe Storms and Flooding (2006): 3 households applied for aid, $7K approved, and $176K to the Town of New Lisbon for repairs.

Is New Lisbon at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (96%), and New Lisbon’s rate for it is higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in New Lisbon.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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