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Natural hazards · Bristol

Bristol, NY natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Bristol comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 2014. 7 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations
Expected damage

How exposed is Bristol?

14
Very low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Bristol to be higher than in 14% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding73%Tornadoes7%Strong wind7%Everything else14%
By hazard

What Bristol faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

73% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 40% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

7% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 32% of U.S. places

Strong wind

7% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 74% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Flood insurance claims

Does Bristol flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bristol, from FEMA’s records.

1paid claims since 2014
$35Kpaid to owners
0homes flooded more than once
20142026
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Bristol isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Ontario County.
Disasters that hit Bristol

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Bristol itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the Town of Bristol.

Brought FEMA money into BristolDeclared for Ontario County only
2023

Severe Storms and Flooding

$143K to the Town of Bristol for repairs
2014

Severe Storms and Flooding

$530K to the Town of Bristol for repairs
2011

Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-Line Winds

$64K to the Town of Bristol for repairs
2004

Severe Storms and Flooding

$9K to the Town of Bristol for repairs
2003

Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes

$40K to the Town of Bristol for repairs
2003

Ice Storm

1 household applied for aid $12K to the Town of Bristol for repairs
1999

Snow

$9K to the Town of Bristol for repairs
Ontario County has had 16 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and hurricanes.
Around Bristol

Bristol and the towns around it

Canandaigua: Very low, mostly inland floodingEast Bloomfield: Very low, mostly inland floodingRichmond: Low, mostly inland floodingSouth Bristol: Low, mostly inland floodingWest Bloomfield: Very low, mostly inland floodingGorham: Low, mostly inland floodingFarmington: Very low, mostly inland floodingHopewell: Very low, mostly inland floodingMiddlesex: High, mostly inland floodingVictor: Very low, mostly inland floodingCanadice: Very low, mostly inland floodingLivonia: Low, mostly inland floodingNaples: High, mostly inland floodingItaly: High, mostly inland floodingLima: Very low, mostly inland floodingMendon: Low, mostly inland floodingBristol: Very low, mostly inland flooding BristolCanandaiguaEast BloomfieldRichmondSouth BristolWest Bloomfield
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
South Bristolmostly inland floodingLow
Richmondmostly inland floodingLow
Canandaiguamostly inland floodingVery low
Bristolmostly inland floodingVery low
West Bloomfieldmostly inland floodingVery low
East Bloomfieldmostly inland floodingVery low
About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.
Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Bristol covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Bristol’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Bristol. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across Bristol total about $439K a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); 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. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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