Photo: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Stockholm as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Stockholm gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns, #540 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%). Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 1996.
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 Stockholm 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
Earthquakes
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 Stockholm’s grade
River and rain flooding is 88% of the building damage FEMA expects in Stockholm, and Stockholm’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 2%, at a rate in the top 10% of U.S. census tracts.
B− #540 of 758 in New York; higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Stockholm’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical New York town has lower expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, Stockholm has more expected damage per building than 71% of New York towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $897K a year in losses across Stockholm: $650K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Stockholm flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 1996
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Stockholm, from FEMA’s records: 3.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 52% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Stockholm 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.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Stockholm
Disasters that paid out in Stockholm itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Stockholm), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 1999Snow$3K to the Town of Stockholm for repairs
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.
Old photos of Stockholm after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Stockholm archive →Stockholm and its neighbors
Stockholm is 5th of the 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Potsdam | B+less damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Lawrence | B+less damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 13 |
| Hopkinton | B+less damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Brasher | B−more damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Stockholm | B−more damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Norfolk | C+more damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Parishville | Cmore damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | — |
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 Stockholm 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Stockholm
Is Stockholm at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Stockholm has higher expected damage per building than 53% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #540 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (88%) and earthquakes (9%). 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 Stockholm flood?
Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Stockholm since 1996, $40K in all, or 3.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 52% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Stockholm 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 Stockholm?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Stockholm’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 Stockholm?
By FEMA money that reached Stockholm, Snow (1999): $3K to the Town of Stockholm for repairs.
Is Stockholm at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (88%), and Stockholm’s rate for it is higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Stockholm.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Stockholm’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.