Natural hazards · Bethel

Bethel, PA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Bethel comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 57 claims here since 1978.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Bethel?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Bethel to be higher than in 47% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding87%Everything else13%

By hazard

What Bethel faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

87% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 75% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningAvalanches

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Bethel flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bethel, from FEMA’s records.

57paid claims since 1978

$1.7Mpaid to owners

8homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Tropical Storm Ivan: 11 claims, $313K
Tropical Storm Lee: 6 claims, $155K
Not a named storm: 4 claims, $4K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Bethel isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Armstrong County.

Disasters that hit Bethel

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Armstrong County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Bethel itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into BethelDeclared for Armstrong County only

Armstrong County has had 15 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and hurricanes.

Around Bethel

Bethel and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Parksmostly inland floodingHigh

Gilpinmostly inland floodingHigh

Manormostly inland floodingHigh

South Buffalomostly inland floodingModerate

Cadoganmostly inland floodingModerate

Bethelmostly inland floodingModerate

Burrellmostly inland floodingModerate

Kittanningmostly inland floodingModerate

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Bethel is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Bethel’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Bethel. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.