Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Wappingers Falls faces less hazard damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Wappingers Falls gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns, #446 of 758 in New York. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%), then hurricanes (10%). Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1984.
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 Wappingers Falls 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 Wappingers Falls’ grade
River and rain flooding is 78% of the building damage FEMA expects in Wappingers Falls, and Wappingers Falls’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 56% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 10% (higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts).
B #446 of 758 in New York; lower expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Wappingers Falls’ residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical New York town has lower expected damage than 69% of U.S. towns; within the state, Wappingers Falls has more expected damage per building than 59% of New York towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Wappingers Falls: $964K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Wappingers Falls flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1984
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Wappingers Falls, from FEMA’s records: 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Floyd1 claim · $1K
- The April 2007 nor’easter1 claim · $1K
- The Torrential rain1 claim · $3K
Wappingers Falls isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Dutchess County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Wappingers Falls
Disasters that paid out in Wappingers Falls itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Wappingers Falls), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2021Remnants of Hurricane Ida159 households applied for aid$370K aid approved
- 2017Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$28K to the Village of Wappingers Falls for repairs
- 2011Hurricane Irene179 households applied for aid$355K aid approved$6K to the Village of Wappingers Falls for repairs
- 2010Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$20K to the Village of Wappingers Falls for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding55 households applied for aid$55K aid approved$22K to the Village of Wappingers Falls for repairs1 flood claim paid that year
- 2003Snow$19K to the Village of Wappingers Falls for repairs
Dutchess County has had 20 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.
Old photos of Wappingers Falls after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Wappingers Falls archive →Wappingers Falls and its neighbors
Wappingers Falls has the lowest expected damage per building of the 1 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wappingers Falls | Bless damage than 61% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| New Hamburg | — | 740 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Myers Corner | — | 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 Wappingers Falls 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 Wappingers Falls
Is Wappingers Falls at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Wappingers Falls has lower expected damage per building than 61% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #446 of 758 in New York. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%) and hurricanes (10%). 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 Wappingers Falls flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Wappingers Falls since 1984, $8K in all, or 1.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 68% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Floyd (1).
Is Wappingers Falls 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 Dutchess County, 31% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Wappingers Falls?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Wappingers Falls’ 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 Wappingers Falls?
By FEMA money that reached Wappingers Falls, Remnants of Hurricane Ida (2021): 159 households applied for aid, $370K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Floyd: 1 paid, $1K.
Is Wappingers Falls at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (78%), and Wappingers Falls’ rate for it is higher than 56% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Wappingers Falls.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Wappingers Falls’ 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.