Photo: Dclemens1971 · CC BY 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Willet
Willet isn’t graded for hazard risk: Willet has 768 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more.
What Willet 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.
Does Willet flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Willet. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Willet isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Cortland County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Willet
Disasters that paid out in Willet itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Willet), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2019Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding$53K to the Town of Willet for repairs
- 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$4K to the Town of Willet for repairs
- 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$27K to the Town of Willet for repairs
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding2 households applied for aid$2K aid approved$33K to the Town of Willet for repairs
Cortland County has had 13 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe 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 Willet after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Willet archive →Willet and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Triangle | Bless damage than 57% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Marathon | Cmore damage than 74% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Smithville | Cmore damage than 74% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Cincinnatus | — | 998 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| German | — | 274 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Willet 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 Willet
Is Willet 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 Cortland County, 21% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Willet?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Willet’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 Willet?
By FEMA money that reached Willet, Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, and Flooding (2019): $53K to the Town of Willet for repairs.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Willet.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Willet’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.