Sylvan Beach Union Chapel · Photo: DPiraino · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Vienna faces more hazard damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Vienna gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns, #747 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (97%). Flood insurance has paid 22 claims here since 1984.
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 Vienna 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 Vienna’s grade
River and rain flooding is 97% of the building damage FEMA expects in Vienna, and Vienna’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
D #747 of 758 in New York; higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Vienna’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, Vienna has more expected damage per building than 99% of New York towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $3.1M a year in losses across Vienna: $2.8M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Vienna flood? Sometimes: 22 flood claims since 1984
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Vienna, from FEMA’s records: 7.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 68% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Vienna isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Oneida County.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Vienna
Disasters that paid out in Vienna itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Vienna), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$188K to the Town of Vienna for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$15K to the Town of Vienna for repairs
- 2007Record Snow and Near Record Snow$15K to the Town of Vienna for repairs
- 2004Snow$11K to the Town of Vienna for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2003Ice Storm$6K to the Town of Vienna for repairs
- 2002Snowstorms$13K to the Town of Vienna for repairs
Show all 7
- 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$37K to the Town of Vienna for repairs
Oneida County has had 21 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, 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 Vienna after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Vienna archive →Vienna and its neighbors
Vienna is 8th of the 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rome | Aless damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | 20 |
| Lenox | Bless damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 10 |
| Verona | B−more damage than 54% | river and rain flooding | 10 |
| Constantia | C+more damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| Annsville | Cmore damage than 67% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Sullivan | Cmore damage than 71% | river and rain flooding | 46 |
| Camden | C−more damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Vienna | Dmore damage than 89% | river and rain flooding | 22 |
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 Vienna 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 Vienna
Is Vienna at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Vienna has higher expected damage per building than 89% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #747 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (97%). 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 Vienna flood?
Flood insurance has paid 22 claims in Vienna since 1984, $139K in all, or 7.2 per 1,000 homes, more than 68% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Vienna 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 Oneida County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Vienna?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Vienna’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 Vienna?
By FEMA money that reached Vienna, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding (2019): $188K to the Town of Vienna for repairs.
Is Vienna at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (97%), and Vienna’s rate for it is in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Vienna.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Vienna’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.