Harrods Creek Baptist Church and Rev. William Kellar House · Photo: Doncram · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Crestwood faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Crestwood gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns, #65 of 142 in Kentucky. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%), then tornadoes (17%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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
What Crestwood faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Tornadoes
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.
What’s behind Crestwood’s grade
River and rain flooding is 73% of the building damage FEMA expects in Crestwood, and Crestwood’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 58% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 17%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
B− #65 of 142 in Kentucky; lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Crestwood’s residents live in 4 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Kentucky town has higher expected damage than 52% of U.S. towns; within the state, Crestwood has less expected damage per building than 55% of Kentucky towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.5M a year in losses across Crestwood: $1.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Crestwood flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Crestwood. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Crestwood isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Oldham County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Crestwood
Disasters that paid out in Crestwood itself (aid to households or repair grants to the City of Crestwood), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2025Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides4 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
- 2024Severe Storms, Straight-line Winds, Tornadoes, Landslides, and Mudslides4 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
- 2022Severe Storms, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides1 households applied for aid$500 aid approved
- 2004Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Mudslides13 households applied for aid$22K aid approved
Oldham County has had 13 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Crestwood after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Crestwood archive →Crestwood and its neighbors
Crestwood has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crestwood | B−less damage than 52% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Pewee Valley | B−more damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | — |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Crestwood faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Crestwood
Is Crestwood at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Crestwood has lower expected damage per building than 52% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk, #65 of 142 in Kentucky. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%) and tornadoes (17%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Crestwood 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 Oldham County, 58% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Crestwood?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Crestwood’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 Crestwood?
By FEMA money that reached Crestwood, Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Flooding, and Mudslides (2004): 13 households applied for aid, $22K approved.
Is Crestwood at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (73%), and Crestwood’s rate for it is higher than 58% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Crestwood.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Crestwood’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.