Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Montgomery faces less hazard damage per building than 71% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Montgomery gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 71% of U.S. towns, #362 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (77%), then hurricanes (12%). Flood insurance has paid 6 claims here since 2007.
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 Montgomery 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 Montgomery’s grade
River and rain flooding is 77% of the building damage FEMA expects in Montgomery, and Montgomery’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 52% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 12% (higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts).
B+ #362 of 758 in New York; lower expected damage per building than 71% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Montgomery’s residents live in 6 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, Montgomery has less expected damage per building than 52% of New York towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.6M a year in losses across Montgomery: $4.3M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Montgomery flood? Rarely: 6 flood claims since 2007
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Montgomery, from FEMA’s records: 0.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 85% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Ida2 claims · $48K
- Hurricane Irene2 claims · $26K
- The April 2007 nor’easter1 claim · $16K
Montgomery 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.9 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Montgomery
Disasters that paid out in Montgomery itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Montgomery), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2021Remnants of Hurricane Ida$157K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs2 flood claims paid for it, $48K
- 2011Hurricane Irene$719K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs2 flood claims paid for it, $26K
- 2010Severe Storms and Flooding$26K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding$31K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$11K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs
- 2004Severe Storms and Flooding$15K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs
Show all 9
- 2003Snow$31K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs
- 2002Snowstorms$28K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$25K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs
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 Montgomery after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Montgomery archive →Montgomery and its neighbors
Montgomery is 6th of the 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maybrook | A+less damage than 98% | river and rain flooding | — |
| New Windsor | Aless damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 43 |
| Wallkill | Aless damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 44 |
| Crawford | A−less damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Shawangunk | B+less damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Montgomery | B+less damage than 71% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Hamptonburgh | B+less damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | 40 |
| Newburgh | — | not graded yet | |
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 Montgomery 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 Montgomery
Is Montgomery at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Montgomery has lower expected damage per building than 71% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #362 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (77%) and hurricanes (12%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Montgomery flood?
Flood insurance has paid 6 claims in Montgomery since 2007, $91K in all, or 0.7 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 85% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Ida (2).
Is Montgomery 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 Montgomery?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Montgomery’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 Montgomery?
By FEMA money that reached Montgomery, Hurricane Irene (2011): $719K to the Town of Montgomery for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Ida: 2 paid, $48K.
Is Montgomery at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (77%), and Montgomery’s rate for it is lower than 52% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Montgomery.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Montgomery’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.