States › New York › Columbia County

Columbia County, New York

Recorded hazard history: storm events since 1950, federal disaster declarations since 1953, flood insurance claims since 1978, and FEMA's risk index.

FIPS 36021 · 61,778 residents (2021) · 635 sq mi · dominant hazard Wind

Hail · 102Tornado · 14Flood · 93Wind · 596Winter · 0

Columbia County within New York. Dots: HailTornadoFloodWind event locations in the kept record. Boundaries: US Census Bureau.

NCEI notes that Storm Data is compiled from a variety of sources including the National Weather Service, other federal, state and local agencies, the media and the public; that property and crop damage figures are estimates; and that some events are recorded by NWS forecast zone rather than by county. FEMA notes that NFIP claim records are redacted and aggregated to protect the privacy of policyholders. NCEI storm records through 30 Jun 2026; OpenFEMA declarations refreshed 1 Oct 2026; NFIP claims as of 8 Sep 2026.

Columbia County, New York, has 834 weather events in the NCEI Storm Events record since 1950, most of them damaging wind.

That is 131.4 events per 100 square miles, in line with the New York figure of 120.3, and 135.0 per 10,000 residents against 28.6 statewide.

17 events fall in the 12 months to 30 Jun 2026. NCEI attributes 1 death and 14 injuries to events in the county, with property damage estimated at $23M and crop damage at $6.5M.

FEMA has designated the county in 27 federal disaster declarations since 1953; the most recent is Hurricane Henri (emergency, 22 Aug 2021).

National Flood Insurance Program policyholders in the county filed 245 claims since 1978, of which 195 were paid, totalling $3.1M (about $16K per paid claim). FEMA counts 173 residential flood policies in force.

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the county's overall risk as "Relatively Low" and its expected annual loss as "Relatively Low" ($25M a year across 18 hazards).

30 tropical storm or hurricane tracks in the HURDAT2 record passed within 100 miles of the county's centre at tropical-storm strength or more, 1 of them within 50 miles at hurricane strength.

17events, last 12 monthsto 30 Jun 2026

834events since 19501 death, 14 injuries recorded

27disaster declarationslast 22 Aug 2021

245NFIP flood claims$3.1M paid

Compared with New York and the United States

Measure	Columbia County	New York	US
Recorded events since 1950	834	56,675	1,977,440
Events per 100 square miles	131.4	120.3	56.0
Events per 10,000 residents	135.0	28.6	59.6
Events in the last 12 months	17	1,948	62,008
Deaths recorded by NCEI	1	578	26,435
Property damage (NCEI estimates)	$23M	$5.7B	$575B
NFIP claims per 1,000 residents	4.0	8.8	8.1
Average paid NFIP claim	$16K	$40K	$43K
Claims per 100 policies in force, last 10 years	8.7	10.1	16.1

County-recorded events plus zone-recorded events whose forecast zone is named for the county. State and US rows include events recorded only by forecast zone. Rates use 2021 Census population and land area.

Events by decade

Hail: 1Wind: 1

Wind: 3

Tornado: 3Wind: 2

Hail: 5Wind: 23

Hail: 9Tornado: 4Flood: 4Wind: 71Lightning: 2

Hail: 34Tornado: 6Flood: 28Wind: 90Lightning: 12

Hail: 49Tornado: 1Flood: 39Wind: 197Lightning: 7Other: 5

Hail: 4Flood: 22Wind: 209Lightning: 2Other: 1

21950s31960s51970s281980s901990s1702000s2982010s2382020s

Recorded events in Columbia County by decade and hazard group. HailTornadoFloodWindLightningOther NCEI recorded only tornadoes, hail and thunderstorm wind before 1996.

Trend: 600 events in the 20 years to 2025 against 211 in the 20 years before. Reporting practice changed in 1996 and again with automated reports in the 2000s, so decade totals measure the record as much as the weather.

Events by type

Wind596

Hail102

Flood93

Lightning23

Tornado14

Other6

Hazard	Events	Deaths	Share of state's events
■ Wind	596	—	2.4%	detail
■ Hail	102	—	2.0%	detail
■ Flood	93	—	1.4%	detail
■ Lightning	23	1	4.0%
■ Tornado	14	—	2.5%	detail
■ Other	6	—	1.1%

Hazard pages exist for hail, tornado, flood, wind and winter where the county has at least 10 recorded events. "Other" covers heavy rain, debris flow, dust, funnel clouds and similar reports.

Largest recorded events

Date	Event type	Group	Magnitude	Property damage	Crop damage	Deaths	Injuries	Geography
7 Jul 2013	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	1	—	County
29 May 1995	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$10M	—	—	5	County
20 Sep 1975	Tornado	Tornado	F1	$25K	—	—	2	County
18 Oct 1990	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	2	County
21 Jul 2003	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$200K	—	—	1	County
12 Jul 1988	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	1	County
18 Oct 1990	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	—	—	—	1	County
5 Jul 2004	Lightning	Lightning	—	—	—	—	1	County
13 Jul 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	58 mph	—	—	—	1	County
16 Jun 2008	Hail	Hail	1.00 in	—	$5.3M	—	—	County
29 Jul 2009	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$4.5M	—	—	—	County
15 Apr 2007	Flood	Flood	—	$2.0M	—	—	—	County
15 Jul 2000	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$1.5M	—	—	—	County
2 Jun 2000	Hail	Hail	1.25 in	$10K	$1.0M	—	—	County
16 Sep 1999	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$600K	—	—	—	County
3 Jul 1997	Tornado	Tornado	F2	$550K	$20K	—	—	County
4 Apr 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	$300K	—	—	—	County
4 Apr 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Wind	0 mph	$300K	—	—	—	County
30 Aug 2004	Flash Flood	Flood	—	$280K	—	—	—	County
31 May 1998	Hail	Hail	1.00 in	$4K	$200K	—	—	County

Ranked by deaths, then injuries, then NCEI's damage estimate. Deaths and injuries are NCEI counts (direct plus indirect); no personal details are recorded here.

Federal disaster declarations

Declared	Number	Type	Incident	Title	Programs
22 Aug 2021	EM-3565	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Henri	Public assistance
20 Mar 2020	DR-4480	Major disaster	Biological	Covid-19 Pandemic	Individual assistance, Public assistance
13 Mar 2020	EM-3434	Emergency	Biological	Covid-19	Public assistance
12 Jul 2017	DR-4322	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm	Public assistance
28 Oct 2012	EM-3351	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Sandy	Public assistance
31 Aug 2011	DR-4020	Major disaster	Hurricane	Hurricane Irene	Individual assistance, Public assistance
26 Aug 2011	EM-3328	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Irene	Public assistance
18 Feb 2011	DR-1957	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm	Public assistance
4 Mar 2009	DR-1827	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
18 Dec 2008	EM-3299	Emergency	Severe Storm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
24 Apr 2007	DR-1692	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Inland And Coastal Flooding	Public assistance
30 Sep 2005	EM-3262	Emergency	Hurricane	Hurricane Katrina Evacuation	Public assistance
19 Apr 2005	DR-1589	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
1 Oct 2004	DR-1564	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
3 Aug 2004	DR-1534	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	—
29 Aug 2003	DR-1486	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms, Flooding, And Tornadoes	Individual assistance, Public assistance
23 Aug 2003	EM-3186	Emergency	Other	Power Outage	Public assistance
27 Mar 2003	EM-3184	Emergency	Snowstorm	Snow	Public assistance
25 Feb 2003	EM-3173	Emergency	Snowstorm	Snowstorms	Public assistance
11 Sep 2001	DR-1391	Major disaster	Fire	Fires And Explosions	Public assistance
11 Oct 2000	EM-3155	Emergency	Other	West Nile Virus	Public assistance
21 Jul 2000	DR-1335	Major disaster	Severe Storm	Severe Storms And Flooding	Public assistance
24 Jan 1996	DR-1095	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms And Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance
12 Jan 1996	DR-1083	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Blizzard Of 96 (Severe Snow Storm)	Public assistance
17 Mar 1993	EM-3107	Emergency	Snowstorm	Severe Blizzard	Public assistance
10 Nov 1987	DR-801	Major disaster	Snowstorm	Severe Winter Storm	Public assistance
20 Jul 1973	DR-401	Major disaster	Flood	Severe Storms & Flooding	Individual assistance, Public assistance

Declarations in which FEMA designated this county, from the OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2). DR: major disaster; EM: emergency; FM: fire management assistance. Programs show whether individual or public assistance was made available.

Flood insurance claims

197820022026

NFIP claims by year of loss in Columbia County, 1978 to 2026 (hover for the amount paid).

Claims since 1978245

Paid claims195

Total paid$3.1M

Average paid claim$16K

Repetitive-loss properties284 severe

Residential policies in force1730.6% of 29,545 structures

Year of loss	Claims	Paid claims	Amount paid	Average paid
2026	9	5	$54,574	$10,915
2024	1	1	$6,570	$6,570
2023	2	0	$0	—
2022	1	0	$0	—
2021	1	1	$18,300	$18,300
2017	1	0	$0	—
2016	1	1	$3,212	$3,212
2014	3	2	$96,335	$48,167
2013	2	0	$0	—
2012	4	4	$252,935	$63,234
2011	54	46	$838,504	$18,228
2009	22	19	$456,017	$24,001
2008	8	6	$77,807	$12,968
2007	12	11	$132,382	$12,035
2006	2	1	$532	$532
2005	14	11	$93,227	$8,475
2004	3	3	$40,489	$13,496
2001	2	2	$6,822	$3,411
2000	17	13	$129,616	$9,970
1999	6	4	$39,630	$9,908
1996	17	12	$291,035	$24,253
1995	5	5	$21,347	$4,269
1994	1	0	$0	—
1993	3	3	$83,169	$27,723
1991	1	1	$706	$706

OpenFEMA NFIP claims (v3, as of 8 Sep 2026), aggregated by year of loss; amounts are building, contents and increased-cost-of-compliance payments as recorded. Repetitive-loss counts from the NFIP Multiple Loss Properties file (2 Aug 2026); policies in force from the NFIP Residential Penetration Rates file (3 Aug 2026).

National Risk Index

Overall riskRelatively Lowscore 68.7 of 100

Expected annual loss$25MRelatively Low

Social vulnerabilityRelatively Moderate

Community resilienceRelatively High

Hazard (NRI)	Risk rating	Expected annual loss
Inland flooding	Relatively Moderate	$17,314,271
Tornado	Relatively Moderate	$2,145,836
Hurricane	Relatively Low	$1,989,604
Cold wave	Relatively Low	$697,302
Earthquake	Relatively Low	$586,361
Lightning	Relatively Moderate	$560,667
Hail	Relatively Low	$440,635
Strong wind	Relatively Low	$391,949
Heat wave	Relatively Low	$249,051
Ice storm	Relatively Moderate	$186,874
Winter weather	Relatively Low	$42,178
Landslide	Relatively Low	$21,534
Wildfire	Very Low	$21,125
Drought	Very Low	$1,508
Avalanche	Very Low	$200

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 release. Ratings are FEMA's relative comparison of counties; expected annual loss is FEMA's modelled estimate of average yearly building, population and agriculture loss. See how to read the NRI.

Hurricane and tropical storm passes

Tracks within 100 miles30

Tracks within 50 miles8

Hurricane strength within 50 miles1

Storm	Year	Closest approach	Max wind while within 100 mi
Henri	2021	98 mi	46 mph
Irene	2011	32 mi	58 mph
Floyd	1999	79 mi	58 mph
Bertha	1996	89 mi	69 mph
Gloria	1985	49 mi	86 mph
David	1979	73 mi	46 mph
Belle	1976	67 mi	69 mph
Agnes	1972	59 mi	52 mph
Doria	1971	72 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1968	61 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1961	81 mi	63 mph
Donna	1960	91 mi	92 mph
Able	1952	37 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1938	75 mi	115 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1934	70 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1929	59 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1924	36 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1915	52 mi	58 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1899	14 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1897	98 mi	52 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1894	90 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	61 mi	69 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1893	18 mi	63 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1888	97 mi	46 mph
Unnamed Atlantic storm	1878	31 mi	69 mph

HURDAT2 best-track positions at tropical-storm strength (34 kt) or more, measured from the county's Census centre point; through the 2025 season. Distance from a track is not the same as the extent of the storm's wind, rain or surge.

ZIP codes with flood claims

12195 75
12516 21
12534 21
12172 16
12184 16
12173 11
12529 11
12125 10
12106 8
12037 7
12523 7
12521 6

ZIP codes whose NFIP claims carry this county's code, with the number of claims. Five or more claims are needed for a ZIP page to be indexed.

Questions and answers

How often does it hail in Columbia County, NY?

NCEI records 102 hail events in Columbia County since 1950, in 27 different years; that is about 1.3 recorded events a year. 24 reports were golf-ball size (1.75 in) or larger.

Has Columbia County had a tornado?

Yes. NCEI records 14 tornadoes in Columbia County since 1950, 4 of them rated (E)F2 or stronger. Tornado deaths recorded: 0.

When was the last federal disaster declaration for Columbia County?

22 Aug 2021: Hurricane Henri, a emergency declaration for hurricane. The county appears in 27 declarations since 1953.

How many flood insurance claims have been filed in Columbia County, and how much was paid?

245 NFIP claims since 1978, 195 of them paid, for $3.1M in total. FEMA publishes these figures redacted and aggregated; individual properties are not identified.

Is Columbia County in the National Risk Index's high-risk band?

FEMA's National Risk Index (December 2025) rates the county "Relatively Low" for overall risk, "Relatively Low" for expected annual loss, "Relatively Moderate" for social vulnerability and "Relatively High" for community resilience. These ratings are FEMA's relative comparison across all US counties.

How does Columbia County compare with the rest of New York?

131.4 recorded events per 100 square miles against 120.3 statewide, and 4.0 NFIP claims per 1,000 residents against 8.8. The comparison table on this page shows each measure beside the state and national figures.

Provenance

Storm events: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, yearly details files through 30 Jun 2026 (public domain). Declarations: OpenFEMA DisasterDeclarationsSummaries v2, refreshed 1 Oct 2026. Flood claims: OpenFEMA NfipClaims v3 as of 8 Sep 2026; NfipMultipleLossProperties v1 (2 Aug 2026); NfipResidentialPenetrationRates v1 (3 Aug 2026). Risk index: FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025. Hurricane tracks: NHC HURDAT2 through 2025. Population and area: US Census Bureau, 2021 vintage. Built 1 Oct 2026; see the methodology and corrections pages. Hazard hubs: Hail · Tornado · Flood · Wind · Winter.