Kings County, NY flood risk and natural hazards

Kings County in the state and national rankings

At about $374.8 million, modeled expected annual loss in Kings County ranks #50 of 3,232 across the US. The county ranks #2 of 62 in New York and accounts for 8.8% of state loss. The modeled $374.8 million annual average does not predict the loss in any single year. Travis County, TX ranks immediately above it, with about $376.3 million in modeled annual loss. The next lower national total is about $370.9 million, in Jefferson Parish, LA. At about $377.1 million, Queens County, NY is one place higher in the state loss ordering. Its 8.8% state loss share accompanies an estimate about $2.3 million away from this county’s total. At about $320.5 million, Suffolk County, NY is one place lower in the state loss ordering. Its 7.5% state loss share accompanies an estimate about $54.3 million away from this county’s total.

New York county comparisons

Kings County hazard estimates

Riverine Flood

For riverine flooding, about $181.2 million in expected annual loss puts the county #50 of 3,232 across the US. At 48.3% of the county’s modeled loss, the hazard places #6 of 62 statewide; FEMA assigns a Very High rating; the Very High label covers 3 state counties and 26 nationally for riverine flooding.

Heat Wave

The national loss rank for heat waves is #11 of 3,202, based on about $63.3 million in modeled expected annual loss. In New York, this estimate ranks #1 of 62 and represents 16.9% of the county’s modeled loss; FEMA assigns a Very High rating; for heat waves, 2 state counties and 11 US counties share that label.

Earthquake

With about $52.0 million in modeled expected annual loss from earthquakes, the county ranks #62 of 3,232 in the national comparison. Its 13.9% share of total loss comes with a state loss rank of #1 of 62; FEMA assigns a Relatively High rating; the Relatively High label covers 2 state counties and 53 nationally for earthquakes.

Hurricane

For hurricanes, about $30.7 million in expected annual loss puts the county #90 of 2,485 across the US. This hazard makes up 8.2% of the total; FEMA assigns a Relatively High rating, and its loss ranks #2 of 62 in New York; the same rating for hurricanes covers 7 New York counties and 118 across the US.

Cold Wave

With about $22.4 million in modeled expected annual loss from cold waves, the county ranks #58 of 3,232 in the national comparison. Its 6.0% share of total loss comes with a state loss rank of #4 of 62; FEMA assigns a Very High rating; the Very High label covers 4 state counties and 39 nationally for cold waves.

Strong Wind

With about $10.1 million in modeled expected annual loss from strong wind, the county ranks #27 of 3,225 in the national comparison. At 2.7% of the county’s modeled loss, the hazard places #1 of 62 statewide; FEMA assigns a Very High rating; the Very High label covers 6 state counties and 63 nationally for strong wind.

Between riverine flooding and heat waves, the modeled dollar gap is about $117.9 million; their shares differ by 31.5 percentage points. Between heat waves and earthquakes, the modeled dollar gap is about $11.3 million; their shares differ by 3.0 percentage points. About $21.3 million separates earthquakes from hurricanes in the local estimates, equivalent to 5.7 percentage points of county loss. Between hurricanes and cold waves, the modeled dollar gap is about $8.2 million; their shares differ by 2.2 percentage points. The loss estimate for cold waves exceeds strong wind by about $12.4 million, equivalent to 3.3 percentage points of total loss.

Population and recorded values

FEMA counts 2,735,309 residents in Kings County, across about 98 square miles. FEMA lists about $371.23 billion in building value. FEMA lists about $208,000 in agricultural value. Total modeled loss averages about $137 per resident annually, compared with about $212 statewide. Its 13.5% share of state residents sits alongside 8.8% of of annual loss. Buildings account for 9.9% of recorded New York building value. By recorded residents per square mile, the county places 2 among 62 New York county records with population and area values. Those recorded totals give about 27,960 residents per square mile, versus about 366 across New York. The median county population in New York is about 87,626, compared with 2,735,309 locally. The county’s national shares are 0.8% for population and 0.2% for modeled loss. The county’s about $137 per resident compares with about $459 nationally in modeled annual loss. The six hazards described above together make up 95.9% of modeled loss, about $359.6 million annually. The balance outside those six estimates is about $15.2 million, or 4.1% of total loss. In position 7 locally, tornadoes has about $6.2 million in modeled annual loss, ranking #3 of 62 statewide. This 1.7% slice of county loss ranks #380 of 3,225 across US counties. In position 8 locally, coastal flooding has about $2.7 million in modeled annual loss, ranking #4 of 26 statewide. Nationally, this estimate places #89 of 588; its share of the county’s modeled loss is 0.7%.

FEMA labels and risk score

Kings County has a FEMA risk index score of about 99.3, ranking #24 of 3,144 nationally. For risk index, FEMA assigns Relatively High; 8 counties in New York have that label. For expected annual loss, FEMA assigns Relatively High; 8 counties in New York have that label. For social vulnerability, FEMA assigns Very High; 7 counties in New York have that label. FEMA labels community resilience as Very Low, matching 3 county records across New York. Its risk score ranks #1 of 62 within New York, while its loss total ranks #2 of 62. Both ratings match in 3 counties statewide: vulnerability is Very High, and resilience is Very Low. Those counties together hold 22.6% of New York modeled loss, including this county’s 38.9% share of their total. With a score of about 99.2, Queens County, NY ranks #2 of 62 statewide, immediately below this county. For that neighboring score, the risk index category is Relatively High, and the county’s state loss share is 8.8%. FEMA lists 629 county records with Very High social vulnerability; together they contain 8.4% of its US population total. FEMA lists 628 county records with Very Low community resilience; together they contain 18.6% of its US population total. Across the county’s hazard ratings, 6 carry Very High: cold waves, heat waves, lightning, riverine flooding, strong wind, winter weather. FEMA assigns Relatively High to 6 hazards here, covering coastal flooding, earthquakes, hail, hurricanes, ice storms, tornadoes. Across the county’s hazard ratings, 3 carry Very Low: drought, landslides, wildfires.