Drexel Hill is calmer than 74% of U.S. communities
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Drexel Hill comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 37 claims here since 1980.
What stands out about Drexel Hill’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
How exposed is Drexel Hill?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 26% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.
Calmer than 1,692 of the 2,558 Pennsylvania towns we cover.
Drexel Hill covers 10 census tracts, combined by population.
What Drexel Hill faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Inland flooding
Earthquakes
Heat waves
Cold waves
Tornadoes
Does Drexel Hill flood? Sometimes: 37 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Drexel Hill, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Isaias4 claims · $292K
- The Mid-spring storms2 claims · $150K
- Tropical Storm Lee2 claims · $11K
Drexel Hill isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Delaware County.The storms Drexel Hill remembers
None of the disasters declared for Delaware County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Drexel Hill itself in FEMA’s records.
- 200410 flood claims paidThe most in any one year on record
Delaware County has had 20 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.
Old photos of Drexel Hill after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Drexel Hill archive →Get ready for what Drexel Hill actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- Know the nearest cooling center or air-conditioned library.
- Drink water before you feel thirsty.
- Check on neighbors who live alone.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Drexel Hill and its neighbors
Drexel Hill ranks 5th calmest of 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Rating | Mostly | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Darby | Low | inland flooding | 363 |
| Drexel Hill | Low | inland flooding | 37 |
| Lansdowne | Low | inland flooding | 8 |
| Clifton Heights | Very low | inland flooding | 7 |
| Haverford | Very low | inland flooding | 139 |
| Springfield | Very low | inland flooding | 123 |
Rating = expected yearly storm and flood damage as a share of what’s there, vs. U.S. communities. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Most disasters here begin in July–September
The month each of Delaware County’s 20 declared disasters began, since 1953.
What these numbers can and can’t tell you
- An average, not a forecast. FEMA’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 there, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings.
- Money that reached town. Flood claims are matched to Drexel Hill’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Drexel Hill.
- It follows property value. FEMA’s model weighs damage to buildings, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels. Across Drexel Hill, expected losses total about $6.0M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Drexel Hill.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.