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Narrowsburg Methodist ChurchNarrowsburg Methodist Church · Photo: Doug Kerr from Upstate New York · CC BY-SA 2.0
C−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Tusten · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Tusten than in 82% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Tusten gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). Flood insurance has paid 39 claims here since 1996.

River and rain flooding 93%Hurricanes 3%Tornadoes 2%

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

more than 82%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C−
in New York · higher than 82% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
93% of expected building damage
Flood claims
39
paid since 1996 · $1.3M
Flooded more than once
8
properties · 1 “severe repetitive loss”
Disasters paid out here
7
of 26 declared for Sullivan County
By hazard

What Tusten 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

93%of expected building damage
Well above average · in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Strong wind Earthquakes Winter storms Ice storms Hail Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Tusten’s grade

River and rain flooding is 93% of the building damage FEMA expects in Tusten, and Tusten’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Tusten sits
Tusten
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C− higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Tusten’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding93%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Tusten: $938K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Tusten’s 1,405 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Narrowsburg CDP (379 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Tusten flood? Sometimes: 39 flood claims since 1996

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Tusten, from FEMA’s records: 31.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 89% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1996: 2 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 5 claims2005: 9 claims2006: 21 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 1 claim2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims200420052006
19962026
Biggest named events
  • The Torrential rain9 claims · $63K
  • Tropical Storm Lee1 claim · $24K
  • Hurricane Ida1 claim · $12K
39
paid claims since 1996
$1.3M
paid to owners
8
homes flooded more than once
$33K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Tusten isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Sullivan County.
Disasters

7 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Tusten

Disasters that paid out in Tusten itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Tusten), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$426K to the Town of Tusten for repairs21 flood claims paid that year
  2. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding$114K to the Town of Tusten for repairs9 flood claims paid that year
  3. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan$334K to the Town of Tusten for repairs
  4. 2004Severe Storms and Flooding$37K to the Town of Tusten for repairs
  5. 2003Snow$11K to the Town of Tusten for repairs
  6. 2002Snowstorms$24K to the Town of Tusten for repairs
Show all 7
  1. 2000Severe Storms and Flooding$1.0M to the Town of Tusten for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in TustenSullivan County only

Sullivan County has had 26 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.

Were you here?

Old photos of Tusten after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Tusten archive →
Next door

Tusten and its neighbors

Tusten is 6th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Lackawaxen Township: hazard risk BDamascus Township: hazard risk C+Narrowsburg: not gradedMasthope: not gradedCochecton: hazard risk BHighland: hazard risk C+Berlin Township: hazard risk B−Lackawaxen TownshipDamascus TownshipNarrowsburgMasthopeCochectonHighlandBerlin TownshipTusten
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Lackawaxen TownshipBless damage than 64%river and rain flooding17
CochectonBless damage than 61%river and rain flooding15
Berlin TownshipB−less damage than 51%river and rain flooding2
HighlandC+more damage than 60%river and rain flooding19
Damascus TownshipC+more damage than 62%river and rain flooding52
TustenC−more damage than 82%river and rain flooding39
Narrowsburg—482 residents; we grade 1,000+
Masthope—689 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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Tusten faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Tusten

Is Tusten at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Tusten has higher expected damage per building than 82% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). 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 Tusten flood?

Flood insurance has paid 39 claims in Tusten since 1996, $1.3M in all, or 31.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 89% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 8 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Torrential rain (9).

Is Tusten 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 Sullivan County, 13% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Tusten?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Tusten’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 Tusten?

By FEMA money that reached Tusten, Severe Storms and Flooding (2000): $1.0M to the Town of Tusten for repairs. By flood claims, Torrential rain: 9 paid, $63K.

Is Tusten at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (93%), and Tusten’s rate for it is in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Tusten.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Tusten’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.