Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Crescent City

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Crescent City, Florida; Corner at N. Summit Street and E. Central AvenuePhoto: FloNight (Sydney Poore) and Russell Poore · CC BY-SA 4.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Crescent City · FEMA

FEMA puts Crescent City’s expected hazard damage per building above that of 76% of U.S. towns, led by hurricanes

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Crescent City gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (48%), then river and rain flooding (40%). Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 2001.

Hurricanes 48%River and rain flooding 40%Wildfire 6%

Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded

more than 76%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in Florida · higher than 76% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
Hurricanes
48% of expected building damage
Flood claims
4
paid since 2001 · $12K
Disasters paid out here
10
of 26 declared for Putnam County
By hazard

What Crescent City faces

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

Hurricanes

48%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

River and rain flooding

40%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 58% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Wildfire

6%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Lightning Hail Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingWinter stormsIce stormsAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Crescent City’s grade

Hurricanes are 48% of the building damage FEMA expects in Crescent City, and Crescent City’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 6%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Crescent City sits
Crescent City
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Crescent City’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
Hurricanes48%River and rain flooding40%Wildfire6%Everything else5%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $711K a year in losses across Crescent City: $582K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Recent disaster.FEMA’s model looks at expected damage to the buildings standing today. After Hurricane Irma in 2017, FEMA took 1,487 aid registrations from Crescent City addresses (the town has 796 homes) and flood insurance paid 1 claims for $589.
Shared tract.All of Crescent City’s 1,654 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Crescent City flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 2001

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Crescent City, from FEMA’s records: 5.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 60% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2001: 1 claim2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 1 claim2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 1 claim2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 1 claim2026: 0 claims200120042017
20012026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Irma1 claim · $589
  • Hurricane Jeanne1 claim · $6K
  • The Torrential rain1 claim · $850
4
paid claims since 2001
$12K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$3K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Crescent City isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Putnam County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
6buildings retrofitted against wind
Disasters

10 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Crescent City

Disasters that paid out in Crescent City itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Crescent City), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2024Hurricane Milton605 households applied for aid$454K aid approved$17K to the City of Crescent City for repairs
  2. 2024Hurricane Helene76 households applied for aid$94K aid approved
  3. 2022Hurricane Nicole22 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
  4. 2022Hurricane Ian523 households applied for aid$375K aid approved$24K to the City of Crescent City for repairs
  5. 2017Hurricane Irma1,487 households applied for aid$726K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $589
  6. 2016Hurricane Matthew212 households applied for aid$118K aid approved$8K to the City of Crescent City for repairs
Show all 10
  1. 2009Severe Storms, Flooding, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds$19K to the City of Crescent City for repairs
  2. 2004Hurricane Jeanne349 households applied for aid$309K aid approved$9K to the City of Crescent City for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $6K
  3. 2004Hurricane Frances657 households applied for aid$611K aid approved$216K to the City of Crescent City for repairs
  4. 2004Tropical Storm Bonnie and Hurricane Charley$900 to the City of Crescent City for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Crescent CityPutnam County only

Putnam County has had 26 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Also 3 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Putnam County, 1999–2026.

Were you here?

Old photos of Crescent City after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Crescent City archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Crescent City faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

Hurricane season
  • The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
  • Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
  • Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
More from Ready.gov ↗
When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Wildfire
  • Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
  • Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
  • Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Crescent City

Is Crescent City at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Crescent City has higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (48%) and river and rain flooding (40%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Crescent City flood?

Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Crescent City since 2001, $12K in all, or 5.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 60% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Irma (1).

Is Crescent City in a flood zone?

Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Putnam County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.6% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Crescent City?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Crescent City’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

What was the biggest storm in Crescent City?

By FEMA money that reached Crescent City, Hurricane Frances (2004): 657 households applied for aid, $611K approved, and $216K to the City of Crescent City for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irma: 1 paid, $589.

Is Crescent City at risk from hurricanes?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (48%), and Crescent City’s rate for it is in the top 8% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Crescent City.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Crescent City’s residents lived in the 2020 census; 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. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.