Natural hazards · Princeton

Princeton, KY natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Princeton comes from earthquakes, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 9 claims here since 1998. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Princeton?

High

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Princeton to be higher than in 76% of U.S. communities, mostly from earthquakes and inland flooding.

Earthquakes31%Inland flooding28%Tornadoes15%Ice storms8%Strong wind6%Everything else12%

By hazard

What Princeton faces

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

Earthquakes

31% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 86% of U.S. places

Inland flooding

28% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 53% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

15% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 91% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 15 years in the area

Ice storms

8% of expected damage

Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Strong wind

6% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesHailWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesLightningDrought

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 Princeton flood?

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

9paid claims since 1998

$219Kpaid to owners

1homes flooded more than once

19982026

Biggest named events

Mid-spring storms: 1 claim, $2K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Princeton isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Caldwell County.

Disasters that hit Princeton

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into PrincetonDeclared for Caldwell County only

2025

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Tornadoes

61 households applied for aid $133K aid approved

2024

Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, Landslides, and Mudslides

56 households applied for aid $95K aid approved

2021

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

533 households applied for aid $270K aid approved

2004

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Mudslides

1 household applied for aid

Caldwell County has had 22 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and winter storms.

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. Princeton 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 Princeton’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Princeton. 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.