Natural hazards · College

College, PA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in College comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 24 claims here since 1979.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is College?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in College to be higher than in 5% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding79%Hurricanes5%Everything else16%

By hazard

What College faces

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

Inland flooding

79% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 22% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Hurricanes

5% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 63% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 29 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 College flood?

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

24paid claims since 1979

$378Kpaid to owners

4homes flooded more than once

19792026

Biggest named events

Tropical Storm Ivan: 9 claims, $240K
Not a named storm: 4 claims, $6K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (0) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Centre County.

Disasters that hit College

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into CollegeDeclared for Centre County only

Centre County has had 13 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and severe storms.

Around College

College and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Harrismostly inland floodingLow

Collegemostly inland floodingVery low

Fergusonmostly inland floodingVery low

Pattonmostly inland floodingVery low

State Collegemostly inland floodingVery low

Bennermostly inland floodingVery low

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. College covers 2 census tracts, combined by population.

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

FEMA’s expected losses across College total about $2.0M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

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.