Photo: PointsofNoReturn · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Greenburgh faces less hazard damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Greenburgh gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns, #159 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (77%), then hurricanes (11%). Flood insurance has paid 402 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 Greenburgh’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Greenburgh 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 Greenburgh’s grade
River and rain flooding is 77% of the building damage FEMA expects in Greenburgh, and Greenburgh’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 74% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 11% (higher than 72% of U.S. census tracts).
A #159 of 758 in New York; lower expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Greenburgh’s residents live in 21 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, Greenburgh has less expected damage per building than 79% of New York towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $17.3M a year in losses across Greenburgh: $13.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Greenburgh flood? Yes: 402 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Greenburgh, from FEMA’s records: 10.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Ida59 claims · $3.6M
- The Late-September New York Flooding49 claims · $1.9M
Greenburgh 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 Greenburgh
Disasters that paid out in Greenburgh itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Greenburgh), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2021Remnants of Hurricane Ida$1.8M to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs59 flood claims paid for it, $3.6M
- 2020Tropical Storm Isaias$672K to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$1.1M to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs
- 2011Hurricane Irene$686K to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs36 flood claims paid for it, $1.4M
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$788K to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs5 flood claims paid that year
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$74K to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs30 flood claims paid that year
Show all 9
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$4K to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs13 flood claims paid that year
- 2003Snow$88K to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$95K to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs12 flood claims paid that year
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 Greenburgh after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Greenburgh archive →Greenburgh and its neighbors
Greenburgh is 5th 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Pleasant | Aless damage than 93% | river and rain flooding | 162 |
| White Plains | Aless damage than 92% | river and rain flooding | 127 |
| Tarrytown | Aless damage than 92% | river and rain flooding | 23 |
| Orangetown | Aless damage than 92% | river and rain flooding | 292 |
| Greenburgh | Aless damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | 402 |
| Scarsdale | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 403 |
| Sleepy Hollow | Aless damage than 89% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| North Castle | Aless damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 43 |
| Greenville | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Hartsdale | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Valhalla | — | 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 Greenburgh 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 Greenburgh
Is Greenburgh at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Greenburgh has lower expected damage per building than 91% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #159 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (77%) and hurricanes (11%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Greenburgh flood?
Flood insurance has paid 402 claims in Greenburgh since 1978, $11.1M in all, or 10.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 75% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 67 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Ida (59).
Is Greenburgh 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 Greenburgh?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Greenburgh’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 Greenburgh?
By FEMA money that reached Greenburgh, Remnants of Hurricane Ida (2021): $1.8M to the Town of Greenburgh for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Ida: 59 paid, $3.6M.
Is Greenburgh at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (77%), and Greenburgh’s rate for it is lower than 74% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Greenburgh.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Greenburgh’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.