Natural hazards · Hemlock

Hemlock, PA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Hemlock comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 256 claims here since 1978.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Hemlock?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Hemlock to be higher than in 46% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding78%Everything else22%

By hazard

What Hemlock faces

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

Inland flooding

78% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 72% of U.S. places

Recorded about once 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 Hemlock flood?

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

256paid claims since 1978

$9.2Mpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Tropical Storm Lee: 101 claims, $5.3M
Tropical Storm Ivan: 5 claims, $90K
Torrential rain: 2 claims, $43K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Columbia County.

Disasters that hit Hemlock

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into HemlockDeclared for Columbia County only

Columbia County has had 17 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often severe storms and floods.

Around Hemlock

Hemlock and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Madisonmostly inland floodingModerate

West Hemlockmostly inland floodingModerate

Hemlockmostly inland floodingModerate

Mount Pleasantmostly inland floodingModerate

Montourmostly inland floodingModerate

Bloomsburgmostly 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. Hemlock covers 1 census tract, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Hemlock’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Hemlock. 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 Hemlock total about $1.5M 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.