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Natural hazards · New York

New York, NY natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in New York comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 36,272 claims here since 1978. 4 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is New York?

19
Very low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in New York to be higher than in 19% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and heat waves.

Inland flooding51%Heat waves16%Earthquakes9%Cold waves9%Hurricanes7%Everything else7%
By hazard

What New York faces

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

Inland flooding

51% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 33% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Heat waves

16% of expected damage
Well below average · higher than 21% of U.S. places
Recorded about 11 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

9% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 68% of U.S. places

Cold waves

9% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 29% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Hurricanes

7% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 75% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area

Lower here

Coastal floodingTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 New York flood?

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

36,272paid claims since 1978
$1,461Mpaid to owners
4,511homes flooded more than once
19782026

Biggest named events

  • Hurricane Sandy: 15,578 claims, $1,296M
  • Not a named storm: 2,577 claims, $7.3M
  • Hurricane Irene: 1,815 claims, $22.6M

Homes that flooded again and again

Each house = 76 homes. ■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (207) ■ flooded 2+ times

of all homes
are insured
No community discount. New York isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Kings County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

4buildings floodproofed
1buildings retrofitted against wind
Disasters that hit New York

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into New YorkDeclared for Kings County only
2021

Remnants of Hurricane Ida

503 households applied for aid $1.1M aid approved
2012

Hurricane Sandy

20,404 households applied for aid $14.0M aid approved
2011

Hurricane Irene

7 households applied for aid $2K aid approved
2001

Fires and Explosions

$1,363M to the City of New York for repairs
Kings County has had 17 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.
Around New York

New York and the towns around it

Hempstead: Low, mostly inland floodingYonkers: Low, mostly inland floodingMount Vernon: Low, mostly inland floodingNorth Hempstead: Very low, mostly inland floodingLawrence: Low, mostly inland floodingValley Stream: Low, mostly inland floodingLinden: Low, mostly inland floodingPelham Manor: Moderate, mostly inland floodingPelham: Moderate, mostly inland floodingBayonne: Moderate, mostly inland floodingGreat Neck Estates: Low, mostly inland floodingElizabeth: Low, mostly inland floodingOyster Bay: Very low, mostly inland floodingGarden City: Very low, mostly inland floodingAtlantic Beach: Low, mostly inland floodingEastchester: Low, mostly inland floodingBronxville: Low, mostly inland floodingTuckahoe: Moderate, mostly inland floodingGreenburgh: Very low, mostly inland floodingAlpine: Very low, mostly inland floodingHastings-on-Hudson: Low, mostly inland floodingPelham: Moderate, mostly inland floodingNew Rochelle: Very low, mostly inland floodingWestbury: Very low, mostly inland floodingRoslyn Harbor: Very low, mostly inland floodingLake Success: Very low, mostly inland floodingSea Cliff: Very low, mostly inland floodingGlen Cove: Very low, mostly inland floodingEast Hills: Very low, mostly inland floodingOld Westbury: Very low, mostly inland floodingCedarhurst: Low, mostly inland floodingWoodsburgh: Low, mostly inland floodingLong Beach: Moderate, mostly inland floodingLynbrook: Low, mostly inland floodingMalverne: Moderate, mostly inland floodingCarteret: Low, mostly inland floodingRoselle: Very low, mostly inland floodingCranford: Moderate, mostly inland floodingWoodbridge: Low, mostly inland floodingWinfield: High, mostly inland floodingRahway: High, mostly inland floodingClark: Moderate, mostly inland floodingJersey City: Moderate, mostly inland floodingNewark: Moderate, mostly inland floodingGreat Neck Plaza: Very low, mostly inland floodingKensington: Very low, mostly inland floodingGreat Neck: Very low, mostly inland floodingNew York: Very low, mostly inland flooding New YorkHempsteadYonkersMount VernonNorth HempsteadLawrenceValley StreamLindenPelham ManorPelhamBayonneGreat Neck EstatesElizabeth
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Pelham Manormostly inland floodingModerate
Pelhammostly inland floodingModerate
Bayonnemostly inland floodingModerate
Valley Streammostly inland floodingLow
Hempsteadmostly inland floodingLow
Mount Vernonmostly inland floodingLow
Lawrencemostly inland floodingLow
Yonkersmostly inland floodingLow
Elizabethmostly inland floodingLow
Lindenmostly inland floodingLow
Great Neck Estatesmostly inland floodingLow
New Yorkmostly inland floodingVery low
North Hempsteadmostly 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. New York covers 2324 census tracts, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to New York’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of New York. 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 New York total about $1,353M 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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