Photo: The original uploader was Daniel Case at English Wikipedia. · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Beaver Dam Lake
Beaver Dam Lake isn’t graded for hazard risk: Beaver Dam Lake is a Census area inside a town, graded with the town. Flood insurance has paid 70 claims here since 1979.
What Beaver Dam Lake 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
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.
Does Beaver Dam Lake flood? Sometimes: 70 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Beaver Dam Lake, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Irene31 claims · $1.5M
- Hurricane Floyd4 claims · $80K
Beaver Dam Lake isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Orange County.The storms Beaver Dam Lake remembers
None of the 25 disasters declared for Orange County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Beaver Dam Lake itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 201132 flood claims paidThe year of Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee, declared for Orange County
- 19968 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Orange County
- 19796 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Orange County has had 25 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Also 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Orange County, 1999–2024.
Old photos of Beaver Dam Lake after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Beaver Dam Lake archive →Beaver Dam Lake and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washingtonville | B−more damage than 52% | river and rain flooding | 225 |
| Salisbury Mills | — | 293 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Beaver Dam Lake 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.
- 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 Beaver Dam Lake
Does Beaver Dam Lake flood?
Flood insurance has paid 70 claims in Beaver Dam Lake since 1979, $2.0M in all. The most claims came from Hurricane Irene (31).
Is Beaver Dam Lake 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 Orange County, 31% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Beaver Dam Lake?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Beaver Dam Lake’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 Beaver Dam Lake?
By flood claims, Hurricane Irene: 31 paid, $1.5M.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Beaver Dam Lake.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Beaver Dam Lake’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.