Photo: AITFFan1 · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Baxter Estates than in 94% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baxter Estates gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (69%), then hurricanes (12%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 2005.
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 Baxter Estates 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
Hurricanes
Coastal flooding
Earthquakes
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 Baxter Estates’ grade
River and rain flooding is 69% of the building damage FEMA expects in Baxter Estates, and Baxter Estates’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 86% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 8%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
A lower expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Baxter Estates’ residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $168K a year in losses across Baxter Estates: $142K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Baxter Estates flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 2005
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Baxter Estates, from FEMA’s records: 7.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Sandy2 claims · $426K
- The Torrential rain1 claim · $912
Baxter Estates isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Nassau County.The storms Baxter Estates remembers
None of the 22 disasters declared for Nassau County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Baxter Estates itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20122 flood claims paidThe year of Hurricane Sandy, declared for Nassau County
- 20051 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Nassau County has had 22 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; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Old photos of Baxter Estates after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Baxter Estates archive →Baxter Estates and its neighbors
Baxter Estates 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter Estates | Aless damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Port Washington North | Aless damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | 20 |
| Port Washington | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
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 Baxter Estates 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.
- 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.
- Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
- Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
- Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Baxter Estates
Is Baxter Estates at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baxter Estates has lower expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (69%) and hurricanes (12%). 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 Baxter Estates flood?
Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Baxter Estates since 2005, $427K in all, or 7.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 67% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Sandy (2).
Is Baxter Estates 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 Nassau County, 76% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 9.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Baxter Estates?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Baxter Estates’ 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 Baxter Estates?
By flood claims, Hurricane Sandy: 2 paid, $426K.
Is Baxter Estates at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (69%), and Baxter Estates’ rate for it is lower than 86% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Baxter Estates.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Baxter Estates’ 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.