Photo: Викичи · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Cortlandt faces less hazard damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cortlandt gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns, #249 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%). Flood insurance has paid 74 claims here since 1978.
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 Cortlandt’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Cortlandt 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
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 Cortlandt’s grade
River and rain flooding is 82% of the building damage FEMA expects in Cortlandt, and Cortlandt’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 1%, at a rate in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
A− #249 of 758 in New York; lower expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Cortlandt’s residents live in 11 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical New York town has lower expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, Cortlandt has less expected damage per building than 67% of New York towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $9.3M a year in losses across Cortlandt: $7.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Cortlandt flood? Sometimes: 74 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Cortlandt, from FEMA’s records: 4.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 58% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Sandy10 claims · $967K
- Hurricane Irene10 claims · $412K
- Hurricane Floyd8 claims · $118K
Cortlandt isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Westchester County.9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Cortlandt
Disasters that paid out in Cortlandt itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Cortlandt), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2023Severe Storm and Flooding$9K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
- 2020Tropical Storm Isaias$389K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$960K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs10 flood claims paid for it, $967K
- 2011Hurricane Irene$439K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs10 flood claims paid for it, $412K
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$175K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$249K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs6 flood claims paid that year
Show all 9
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$7K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs4 flood claims paid that year
- 2003Snow$117K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$650K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs8 flood claims paid for it, $118K
Westchester County has had 23 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 Cortlandt after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Cortlandt archive →Cortlandt and its neighbors
Cortlandt is 6th of the 8 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ossining | A+less damage than 96% | river and rain flooding | 15 |
| Buchanan | A+less damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Ossining | A+less damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | 43 |
| Yorktown | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 144 |
| Croton-on-Hudson | Aless damage than 87% | river and rain flooding | 10 |
| Cortlandt | A−less damage than 84% | river and rain flooding | 74 |
| Peekskill | A−less damage than 83% | river and rain flooding | 32 |
| Stony Point | Bless damage than 62% | river and rain flooding | 77 |
| Lake Mohegan | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Verplanck | — | 650 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Montrose | — | 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 Cortlandt 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.
- 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 Cortlandt
Is Cortlandt at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cortlandt has lower expected damage per building than 84% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk, #249 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%) and hurricanes (9%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Cortlandt flood?
Flood insurance has paid 74 claims in Cortlandt since 1978, $2.1M in all, or 4.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 58% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 10 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Sandy (10).
Is Cortlandt 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 Westchester County, 64% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 3.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Cortlandt?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cortlandt’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 Cortlandt?
By FEMA money that reached Cortlandt, Hurricane Sandy (2012): $960K to the Town of Cortlandt for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Sandy: 10 paid, $967K.
Is Cortlandt at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (82%), and Cortlandt’s rate for it is lower than 62% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cortlandt.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cortlandt’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.