A recent comprehensive GIS analysis commissioned by the Long Island Regional Planning Council reveals that over 43,000 businesses along the South Shore of Long Island are at risk of severe flooding.

These businesses employ nearly 370,000 people and generate an impressive annual sales volume of $56 billion. Among them, more than 7,000 businesses—employing over 80,000 individuals and contributing $8.5 billion in annual sales—fall into the high-risk and very high-risk categories.

The Long Island Economic Flood Risk Study, conducted by LIRO GIS, analyzes and quantifies potential economic loss for more than 48,000 businesses along the south shore of Nassau and Suffolk counties based on FEMA flood plain maps expanded with further available data and assesses risk in ranges of negligible, low, medium, high and very high risk. 

For the study, very high-risk area is defined as the FEMA 100-year Flood Zone; high-risk area in the FEMA 500-year Flood Zone; medium-risk with a quarter-mile buffer from the 100-year zone north to Montauk Highway/Merrick Road; and low-risk between Montauk Highway/Merrick Road and Sunrise Highway.
“As we saw with Superstorm Sandy in 2011, the devastation from severe flooding impacts not only residents along the south shore but commercial properties,” noted John Cameron, LIRPC chair. “It is vital to quantify the potential economic hit our regional economy could sustain from the next big storm, and work with all levels of government on developing measures and strategies that can mitigate  the risk.”

The study is available at LIRPC.org and features an interactive map to break out the impact on individual communities. The report also identifies the ten most impacted communities in each county, based on annual sales volume. 

Most Impacted Communities:

SUFFOLK COUNTY (sales numbers approx.)

• Bay Shore ($3.6 billion)
• West Babylon ($3.1 billion)
• Lindenhurst ($2.5 billion)
• Hampton Bays ($2.3 billion)
• Shirley ($2.3 billion)
• North Lindenhurst ($1.5 billion)
• West Islip ($1.5 billion)
• Amityville ($1.4 billion)
• East Patchogue ($1.2 billion)
• Patchogue ($1.2 billion)

NASSAU COUNTY (sales numbers approx.)

• Freeport ($3 billion)
• Inwood ($2.2 billion)
• Rockville Centre ($2.2 billion)
• Oceanside ($2 billion)
• Wantagh ($1.6 billion)
• Lynbrook ($1.5 billion)
• Valley Stream ($1.5 billion)
• Baldwin ($1.3 billion)
• Bellmore ($1.1 billion)
• Merrick ($1 billion)