Westvale is calmer than 70% of U.S. communities
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Westvale comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1978.
What stands out about Westvale’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
How exposed is Westvale?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 30% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.
Calmer than 940 of the 1,524 New York towns we cover.
Westvale covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
Does Westvale flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Westvale, from FEMA’s records.
Westvale isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Onondaga County.What Westvale faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Inland flooding
Tornadoes
Strong wind
Federal disasters declared here
None of the disasters declared for Onondaga County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Westvale itself in FEMA’s records.
Onondaga County has had 14 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and hurricanes.
Get ready for what Westvale actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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.
Westvale and its neighbors
Westvale ranks 3rd calmest of 4 towns around it. Tap a town to see its hazards.
Rating = expected yearly storm and flood damage as a share of what’s there, vs. U.S. communities. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Most disasters here begin in August–October
The month each of Onondaga County’s 14 declared disasters began, since 1953.
What these numbers can and can’t tell you
- An average, not a forecast. FEMA’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 there, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings.
- Money that reached town. Flood claims are matched to Westvale’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Westvale.
- It follows property value. FEMA’s model weighs damage to buildings, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels. Across Westvale, expected losses total about $858K a year, counting buildings, people and crops.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Westvale.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.