Long Island faces devastation from climate change, severe storms, NYS report warns

A New York comptroller's report released ahead of Wednesday's 13th anniversary of Superstorm Sandy lays bare Long Island's continued vulnerability to catastrophic storms, and warns of more devastation unless additional measures are taken to reduce the effects of climate change.

The report, from Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli's office, shows that Suffolk County has led the state in severe weather over the past three decades. Separately, the report found that Long Islanders overall have received $3.4 billion from flood insurance claims over the past 47 years, more than anywhere else in the state in that time.

"It is clear that New York is facing serious and costly impacts from severe weather, and that severe weather events are increasing in frequency," DiNapoli said in the report. "It is likely that the frequency and intensity of extreme weather will continue to increase for the foreseeable future."

'Extreme risk'

"Long Island’s geography makes it particularly vulnerable to storm surges and high winds," the report states. Some areas of the Island with the highest elevation are found to be relatively safe, while low-lying coastal communities face “extreme risk," DiNapoli's report said, citing a study by Stony Brook University’s School of Atmospheric and Marine Sciences.

The severe weather includes thunderstorms, high winds, flash floods and heavy snow.

Long Island also has led the state in emergency disaster declarations for the past half-century. Suffolk declared 36 emergency and disaster declarations between 1978 and 2024, while Nassau declared 31 such emergencies during that period, the report said.

Between 1996 and 2024, Suffolk led the state, with 1,751 severe storms. Nassau ranked 22nd, with 899, according to the comptroller’s office and the National Weather Service.

Long Island's location leaves it more susceptible to severe storms, which in recent years have produced more rain, said Stony Brook University professor Kevin Reed, the chief climate scientist for the New York Climate Exchange. The exchange is a nonprofit that "unlocks climate solutions," according to its website, and includes researchers and climate experts from Stony Brook and other universities and organizations nationwide.

Even with more severe storms, Reed told Newsday, hurricanes and storms like Sandy are still somewhat rare. But Long Island will likely see more significant rainfall due to climate change, such as an August storm last year that dropped nearly 10 inches of rain on Suffolk's North Shore, flooding parts of the university, Reed said.

More severe storms

"What we are seeing on Long Island and the Northeast as a whole," he added. "are different types of storms that bring large amounts of rain and there's been an increase in frequency and severity of these storms."

The comptroller said in the report that a multiagency effort to address climate change, the New York State Adaptation and Resilience Plan, "must consider the need to upgrade our infrastructure, homes and businesses to better resist extreme weather, as well as the need for federal partners to help make the costs of necessary projects more affordable for New Yorkers."

Gov. Kathy Hochul's office announced the plan in April to shore up areas vulnerable to flooding and rising sea levels as a way to prevent the scope of damage left behind by Sandy and other large storms. Funding comes from a 2022 $4.2 billion state bond, including $1.5 billion already invested in various projects.

New York has received nearly $1 billion in annual federal disaster assistance, for an average of 2.5 major declared disasters each year, according to the comptroller’s office. Damage from natural disasters, including flash flooding and storms, typically costs New York, on average, about $1.4 billion annually, according to the report.

Freezing federal funds

Sandy made landfall on Oct. 29, 2012, sending 17-foot waves and a 12-foot storm surge toward the South Shore, leading to 13 deaths on the Island. All told, the superstorm caused an estimated $32.8 billion in damage to Long Island, New York City and other parts of the state. Insurance claims covered $5.8 billion, according to the comptroller’s office, leaving a $27 billion gap.

Statewide, DiNapoli's report said, only 3% of properties have flood insurance, including 25% in Nassau and 18% in Suffolk. Sandy damage has accounted for 70% of all flood insurance payments paid since 1978, according to the report.

State storm protection projects' previously awarded federal funds have been frozen, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is working to claw back funding, the report added. The EPA under President Donald Trump has also paused distributing part of $1.3 billion in grants aimed at reducing the effects of climate change in New York, the report said.

Other Trump administration proposals, including a reduction in financial assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, could quadruple the amount of damage from future storms and disasters needed to qualify for FEMA funding, said DiNapoli’s report.

"These proposals could further disadvantage residents in areas experiencing medium level disasters that were found to already face severe recovery challenges," the report stated.

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.