116 flood insurance claims·$1.8M paid·6 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Warren County, New York. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
River flooding and flash flooding from heavy rainfall and thunderstorms dominate Warren County's flood history, supported by 71 flood events, 34 flash floods, and 2 tropical storms recorded over the last 30 years. Recent events illustrate this pattern, including a coastal low-pressure system on March 7, 2024, that brought 1 to 2 inches of rain and localized areal flooding, as well as a low-pressure system on December 18, 2023, that dropped 2 to 5 inches of rain, caused areal and river flooding, and prompted States of Emergency for Warren County and the Town of Johnsburg.
National Flood Insurance Program claims data show impacts extending across multiple zones. Properties in high-risk Zone A recorded 52 claims with an average water depth of 18 inches and an average payout of $18,499. Meanwhile, moderate-to-low risk areas also experienced significant damage, including Zone X with 29 claims averaging 12 inches of water depth, and unshaded Zone X_UNSHADED properties recording 14 claims with an average water depth of 20 inches.
Homeowners, real estate agents, and journalists should pay the closest attention to properties located in mapped high-risk Zone A, as well as those in Zone X and unshaded Zone X areas where recorded water depths and average claim payouts demonstrate substantial flood risk outside of primary designated flood zones.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
22% of Warren County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
67 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 13 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 2011, with 31 claims and $951,626 paid, the year of Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds and Hurricane Irene.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
56 NOAA storm reports from Warren County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the New York flood stories →
19 federal disaster declarations since 1976, 6 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, And Flooding | Oct 31, 2019 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Jun 26, 2013 |
| Hurricane Sandy | Oct 27, 2012 |
| Hurricane Irene | Aug 26, 2011 |
| Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, And Straight-line Winds | Apr 26, 2011 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Mar 13, 2010 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Aug 29, 2005 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | Aug 13, 2004 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
107 since 1996: 34 flash floods and 71 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Jul 24, 2024 | $500 |
| Flood | May 21, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Mar 7, 2024 | — |
| Flood | Dec 18, 2023 | $25,000 |
| Flood | Dec 18, 2023 | $10,000 |
| Flood | Dec 18, 2023 | $15,000 |
| Flood | Dec 18, 2023 | $2,000 |
| Flood | Dec 18, 2023 | $20,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Jul 24, 2024. Scattered showers and thunderstorms impacted eastern New York on July 24, 2024 as a result of the passing of an upper-level disturbance. A couple of thunderstorms became severe in nature, producing severe wind gusts that contributed to several reports of tree and wire damage in the Eastern Catskills and Upper-Hudson Valley. An isolated, weak EF0 tornado was also reported near Broadalbin which also resulted in tree…
Flood · May 21, 2024. Isolated showers and thunderstorms developed across eastern New York during the afternoon hours on May 21, 2024. Some of the stronger thunderstorms became severe producing localized wind damage, large hail and street flooding.
Flood · Mar 7, 2024. A coastal low pressure system brought a widespread rainfall to eastern New York during the early morning hours on March 7, 2024. Between 1 and 2 inches of rain fell across the area. This rain was enough to result in some localized areal flooding.
Flood · Dec 18, 2023. An area of low pressure tracked up the East Coast and intensified in the process as it brought widespread moderate to heavy rainfall across eastern New York on December 18, 2023. Rainfall totals were between 2 and 5 inches with the highest amounts across the eastern Catskills. This rain led to both areal and river flooding across the region. Some rivers didn't recede until December 22.||States of Emergency were is…
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Warren County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.