Natural hazards · Elwood

Elwood, NY natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Elwood comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 1979.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Elwood?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Elwood to be higher than in 5% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and hurricanes.

Inland flooding61%Hurricanes15%Earthquakes9%Cold waves5%Everything else10%

By hazard

What Elwood faces

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

Inland flooding

61% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 11% of U.S. places

Recorded about 4 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

15% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 80% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

Earthquakes

9% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 59% of U.S. places

Cold waves

5% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 20% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Elwood flood?

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

7paid claims since 1979

$24Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19792026

Biggest named events

Not a named storm: 2 claims, $5K
Late-September New York Flooding: 1 claim, $1K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Suffolk County.

Disasters that hit Elwood

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Suffolk County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Elwood itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into ElwoodDeclared for Suffolk County only

Suffolk County has had 28 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and severe storms.

Around Elwood

Elwood and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Huntington Stationmostly inland floodingVery low

Elwoodmostly inland floodingVery low

Greenlawnmostly inland floodingVery low

Dix Hillsmostly inland floodingVery low

South Huntingtonmostly inland floodingVery low

Commackmostly 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. Elwood covers 3 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Elwood’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Elwood. 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 Elwood total about $2.1M 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.