Photo: Amy Lavine · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Kingston
Kingston isn’t graded for hazard risk: Kingston has 945 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 20 claims here since 1980.
What Kingston 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 Kingston flood? Sometimes: 20 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Kingston, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Irene12 claims · $564K
- The Torrential rain1 claim · $25K
Kingston isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Ulster County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Kingston
Disasters that paid out in Kingston itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Kingston), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$10K to the Town of Kingston for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$6K to the Town of Kingston for repairs
- 2011Hurricane Irene$70K to the Town of Kingston for repairs12 flood claims paid for it, $564K
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$13K to the Town of Kingston for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2003Snow$1K to the Town of Kingston for repairs
- 2002Snowstorms$3K to the Town of Kingston for repairs
Ulster County has had 28 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Old photos of Kingston after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Kingston archive →Kingston and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
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 Kingston 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 Kingston
Does Kingston flood?
Flood insurance has paid 20 claims in Kingston since 1980, $613K in all. The most claims came from Hurricane Irene (12).
Is Kingston 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 Ulster County, 26% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Kingston?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Kingston’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 Kingston?
By FEMA money that reached Kingston, Hurricane Irene (2011): $70K to the Town of Kingston for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Irene: 12 paid, $564K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Kingston.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Kingston’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.