Area guideBay Shore
Water Damage Restoration Help in Bay Shore, NY
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The hamlet of Bay Shore · Town of Islip
Water in the basement, a burst pipe, or sewage backing up into the house? Call and we'll connect you with a local specialist who covers Bay Shore, even if you don't know the cause yet.
Water doesn't stay where it lands. It soaks into drywall, insulation and flooring, and mold can start within 24 to 48 hours.
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Since 1978, federal flood insurance has paid $79.0 million on 2,044 claims in ZIP 11706, which takes in Bay Shore, so water has reached homes here before.
Bay Shore at a glanceTap a figure to see it on the map
Flood risk: HighFlood zone. 283 of the 8,138 addresses here are inside FEMA's mapped flood zone. 239 more are within about 100 ft of its edge.
If your home is in it, most mortgage lenders must require flood insurance. That is a separate policy from homeowner's insurance, which usually covers a burst pipe or leaking appliance.
The percentage above counts all developed land, including lawns, parks and roads, not just homes.
Each square is about 500 ft across. Color shows how many of its addresses are mapped inside the zone:
- Fewer than half
- Half or more
- All
Groundwater. At 5,744 of the 8,132 addresses measured here, groundwater is within 14 ft of the surface, close enough to reach a basement floor.
In those basements, water can seep up through the floor and come back after pumping until the ground drains. The 2,388 measured deeper are the exception.
6 addresses fall where the groundwater map has no reading.
Each square is about 500 ft across. Color shows the typical depth under its addresses (USGS map, spring 2013):
- Within 10 ft3,857
- 10 to 14 ft1,887
- 14 to 25 ft2,388
Sewer. 7,333 of the 8,138 addresses in Bay Shore have a county sewer main mapped past them. That does not mean every house is connected.
Where a house is connected, a backup is a blocked line. A plumber clears the pipe to the street. The sewer district clears the main.
Each square is about 500 ft across. Color shows how many of its addresses have a mapped main:
- Fewer than half
- Half or more
- All
What is happening at your home?
Other water emergencies we cover
Not sure which one fits? Call (631) 440-4144 and tell us what you see.
Why water gets into Bay Shore homes
In Bay Shore, flooding is the outside risk, and inside the house the risks are a blocked sewer line, groundwater coming up into the basement, pipes bursting in the cold and old plumbing leaking inside the walls.
- Water coming in from outside. If the water came in from outside, it is a flood claim: photograph the water line and every damaged item before cleanup starts, because the adjuster will ask for them. In Bay Shore, 7.6% of the built-up land is inside FEMA's flood zone, and homes there with a federally backed mortgage are required to carry flood insurance. Since 1978, policyholders in ZIP 11706 have filed 2,044 federal flood insurance claims, a record of flood water reaching buildings in this ZIP. Look up your street. Storm Damage Restoration help
- Sewage coming up a drain. Sewage in the house is contaminated water, so it needs a crew that cleans, disinfects and dries, not a mop and a fan. With Bay Shore on public sewer, roots and grease in the line to the street are a common cause of a backup, and the first place it shows is a basement floor drain or a low toilet. Sewage Backup help in Bay Shore
- Water in the basement. A sump pump with a battery backup keeps running when a storm cuts the power, which is when the ground is wettest. In Bay Shore, the water table is about 12 ft down, close enough to push water up through a basement floor, so a basement that has been pumped dry can fill again. Basement Flooding help in Bay Shore
- A burst pipe. A frozen pipe that has not split yet can be saved: open the tap and warm the line gently from the tap end back, never with a flame. In a hard freeze the pipes that split are the ones in outside walls and crawlspaces, and Bay Shore's houses, about 61 years old on average, have plenty of them. Frozen Pipe Burst help in Bay Shore
- A leak in a wall or ceiling. An old shutoff valve can seize, so find the main valve and test that it turns before the day you need it. About 58% of Bay Shore's homes were built before 1970, and pipes from that era, galvanized steel and cast iron, corrode from the inside until a joint or a section gives way. Ceiling & Roof Leak Water Damage help
Insurance and safety guidance from FEMA FloodSmart, the CDC and the Red Cross. How we measured the figures.
Street by street in Bay Shore
See how many of its addresses are mapped inside the FEMA flood zone, how deep groundwater is mapped under it, and whether a sewer main is mapped past it.
306 streets, from county address records. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Streets inside the FEMA flood zone
283 of 8,138 address points in Bay Shore are mapped inside a FEMA special flood hazard area. These streets hold the most of them:
- S Penataquit Ave — 29 of 55 addresses
- Homan Ave — 23 of 23 addresses
- S Clinton Ave — 22 of 58 addresses
- Ocean Ave — 22 of 71 addresses
- Awixa Ave — 21 of 51 addresses
- Mowbray Ave — 17 of 32 addresses
- Degnon Blvd — 15 of 21 addresses
- Auburn Ave — 13 of 15 addresses
Streets with a mapped sewer main
County records map an active sewer main past 7,333 of 8,138 address points in Bay Shore. On 253 streets nearly every address has one; the largest:
- 5th Ave — 164 addresses
- N Clinton Ave — 154 addresses
- Lombardy Blvd — 150 addresses
- Brooklyn Blvd — 137 addresses
- Penataquit Ave — 126 addresses
- Union Blvd — 125 addresses
- Justine Ct — 121 addresses
- Pine Acres Blvd — 118 addresses
Quick facts — Bay Shore
Flood and storm
- FEMA flood zone
- AE (100-yr floodplain)
- Hurricane Sandy high-water mark
- 6.1 ft The one mark USGS surveyed in Bay Shore after the 2012 storm, in feet above the NAVD88 datum — a reading at one point, not a level across all of Bay Shore. Ground elevation here averages 31 ft on the same datum.
- Water nearby
-
Great South Bay to the south-east, Lawrence Lake to the south and O-co-nee Lake to the south-west.
Each direction is to its nearest point, from the center of Bay Shore.
All 9 named water features
- East: Orowoc Creek
- South-east: Great South Bay, Penataquit Creek, Awixa Creek
- South: Lawrence Lake, Lawrence Canal, Lawrence Creek, Watchogue Creek
- South-west: O-co-nee Lake
Bay Shore's land area
- FEMA coastal wave zone (VE)
- FEMA 100-year floodplain (AE)
- The flood-zone figure above says how much of the land these zones cover.
Homes here
- Sewer status
- Sewered
- Home heating fuel
- 28% fuel oil Utility gas heats 50% of occupied homes in Bay Shore. Census estimates; the oil figure is within 6 points. An oil tank can float or tip in a flood and spill. That is a separate cleanup from the water (NYS DEC). In a cold snap, an empty tank means no heat.
- When homes were built
- Spread across decades The highlighted 1950s band is the largest, at 19%, but its lead over the before-1940 band (18%) is inside the Census margin of error (3 points), so no decade clearly leads in Bay Shore. Most homes here are over 30 years old. Past that age, an insurance-industry study (IBHS) found supply and drain pipe problems three times as likely.
In an emergency
- Nearest fire department
- Brentwood Fire Department, Bay Shore Fire Department
- Nearest emergency shelter
- Brentwood Senior High SchoolNot every shelter opens for every storm, and the nearest may stay closed. Suffolk County announces which ones open; follow its alerts and local news before you go.
- ZIP code
- 11706
Sources: FEMA NFHL / NOAA SLOSH, US Census ACS, USDA SSURGO, Suffolk County records. Verified 2026-10-18. How we measured this.
Bay Shore and nearby areas
Bay Shore has the largest mapped floodplain share of the 7 areas compared here.
- Bay Shore 7.6%
- Brightwaters 7.5%
- West Islip 6.9%
- Islip 4.4%
- West Bay Shore 3.8%
- Baywood 0.0%
- North Bay Shore 0.0%
Share of developed area inside FEMA's mapped floodplain, largest first.
4 of the other 6 areas compared here have shallower average groundwater than Bay Shore.
- Brightwaters 7 ft
- West Bay Shore 8 ft
- West Islip 8 ft
- Islip 9 ft
- Bay Shore 12 ft
- Baywood 21 ft
- North Bay Shore 25 ft
Average depth to groundwater, shallowest first.
4 of the other 6 areas compared here have lower average ground than Bay Shore.
- West Bay Shore 18 ft
- Brightwaters 19 ft
- West Islip 21 ft
- Islip 25 ft
- Bay Shore 31 ft
- North Bay Shore 62 ft
- Baywood 64 ft
Average height above sea level, lowest first.
Across the 6 areas around Bay Shore the sewer coverage averages 64%. Here it is 96%. Bay Shore is more sewered than the areas around it.
Compared with the areas around Bay Shore. How we measured them.
Frequently asked questions about Bay Shore
Is Bay Shore in a flood zone?
Bay Shore's FEMA-mapped flood zone is AE (100-yr floodplain), covering about 7.6% of the developed area, per FEMA's flood map (NFHL).
Does Bay Shore have public sewer, or cesspools?
Bay Shore is on public sewer — about 96% of developed land sits inside an active sewer district, so backups here usually trace to the municipal main or your lateral.
How deep is the water table in Bay Shore?
The measured water table runs about 12 ft below the surface on average across Bay Shore. It is mapped within 10 ft at 3,857 of 8,138 addresses and within 25 ft at 8,132.
How old are homes in Bay Shore?
The average home in Bay Shore is about 61 years old, and 58% of the housing stock predates 1970 — older plumbing and unwaterproofed foundations are a common factor in local water damage.
About the figures for Bay Shore
Check them at the source
Who to call for water damage in Bay Shore
(631) 440-4144Tell us what is happening. We connect you with a local specialist who covers Bay Shore.