On FEMA’s figures, Cold Spring faces less hazard damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cold Spring gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%). Flood insurance has paid 31 claims here since 1992.
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 stands out about Cold Spring’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Cold Spring 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
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 Cold Spring’s grade
River and rain flooding is 82% of the building damage FEMA expects in Cold Spring, and Cold Spring’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 57% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 2%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
B lower expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Cold Spring’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $517K a year in losses across Cold Spring: $449K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Cold Spring flood? Sometimes: 31 flood claims since 1992
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Cold Spring, from FEMA’s records: 31.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 89% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Sandy13 claims · $1.6M
- Hurricane Irene7 claims · $252K
- The December Storm - nor’easter3 claims · $65K
Cold Spring 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.7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Cold Spring
Disasters that paid out in Cold Spring itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Cold Spring), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2023Severe Storms and Flooding$1.2M to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs4 flood claims paid that year
- 2020Tropical Storm Isaias$11K to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy26 households applied for aid$69K aid approved$161K to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs13 flood claims paid for it, $1.6M
- 2011Hurricane Irene82 households applied for aid$292K aid approved$21K to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs7 flood claims paid for it, $252K
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$837 to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs
- 2003Snow$3K to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs
Show all 7
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$66K to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs
Putnam County has had 20 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 Cold Spring after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Cold Spring archive →Cold Spring and its neighbors
Cold Spring has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cold Spring | Bless damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | 31 |
| Nelsonville | — | 714 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 Cold Spring 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.
- 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 Cold Spring
Is Cold Spring at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cold Spring has lower expected damage per building than 63% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%) and earthquakes (8%). 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 Cold Spring flood?
Flood insurance has paid 31 claims in Cold Spring since 1992, $2.3M in all, or 31.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 89% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 7 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Sandy (13).
Is Cold Spring 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, 63% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Cold Spring?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cold Spring’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 Cold Spring?
By FEMA money that reached Cold Spring, Severe Storms and Flooding (2023): $1.2M to the Village of Cold Spring for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Sandy: 13 paid, $1.6M.
Is Cold Spring at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (82%), and Cold Spring’s rate for it is higher than 57% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cold Spring.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cold Spring’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.