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Natural hazards · Saranac

Saranac, NY natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Saranac comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 1996. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Saranac?

63
High
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Saranac to be higher than in 63% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding83%Everything else17%
By hazard

What Saranac faces

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

Inland flooding

83% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningAvalanches

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtTsunamisVolcanic 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 Saranac flood?

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

7paid claims since 1996
$46Kpaid to owners
0homes flooded more than once
19962026
of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Saranac isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Clinton County.
Disasters that hit Saranac

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into SaranacDeclared for Clinton County only
2023

Severe Storms and Flooding

$526K to the Town of Saranac for repairs
2017

Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm

$24K to the Town of Saranac for repairs
2013

Severe Storms and Flooding

$689K to the Town of Saranac for repairs
2011

Hurricane Irene

19 households applied for aid $13K aid approved
2011

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

$119K to the Town of Saranac for repairs
Clinton County has had 14 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.
Around Saranac

Saranac and the towns around it

Black Brook: High, mostly inland floodingDannemora: Moderate, mostly inland floodingSchuyler Falls: High, mostly inland floodingPlattsburgh: Moderate, mostly inland floodingFranklin: Very low, mostly inland floodingPeru: Moderate, mostly inland floodingBellmont: High, mostly inland floodingJay: High, mostly inland floodingWilmington: High, mostly inland floodingAu Sable: High, mostly inland floodingBeekmantown: High, mostly inland floodingEllenburg: Moderate, mostly inland floodingAltona: High, mostly inland floodingGrand Isle: Moderate, mostly inland floodingSouth Hero: Moderate, mostly inland floodingSt. Armand: High, mostly inland floodingBrighton: Very low, mostly inland floodingMalone: Low, mostly inland floodingChateaugay: Low, mostly inland floodingBurke: Low, mostly inland floodingDuane: High, mostly inland floodingSaranac: High, mostly inland flooding SaranacBlack BrookDannemoraSchuyler FallsPlattsburghFranklinPeruBellmont
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Schuyler Fallsmostly inland floodingHigh
Bellmontmostly inland floodingHigh
Saranacmostly inland floodingHigh
Black Brookmostly inland floodingHigh
Perumostly inland floodingModerate
Dannemoramostly inland floodingModerate
Plattsburghmostly inland floodingModerate
Franklinmostly 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. Saranac is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Saranac’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Saranac. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

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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