Natural hazards · Hershey

Hershey, PA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Hershey comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 34 claims here since 1979.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Hershey?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Hershey to be higher than in 14% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding60%Hurricanes13%Tornadoes7%Earthquakes5%Everything else15%

By hazard

What Hershey faces

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

Inland flooding

60% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 24% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

13% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 81% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 13 years in the area

Tornadoes

7% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 51% of U.S. places

Earthquakes

5% of expected damage

Below average · higher than 49% of U.S. places

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Hershey flood?

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

34paid claims since 1979

$1.2Mpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19792026

Biggest named events

Tropical Storm Lee: 11 claims, $479K
Tropical Storm Ivan: 3 claims, $119K
Not a named storm: 2 claims, $22K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Dauphin County.

Disasters that hit Hershey

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into HersheyDeclared for Dauphin County only

Dauphin County has had 18 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and hurricanes.

Around Hershey

Hershey and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

South Hanovermostly inland floodingModerate

Palmdalemostly inland floodingModerate

East Hanovermostly inland floodingModerate

Derrymostly inland floodingLow

Hersheymostly 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. Hershey covers 4 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Hershey’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Hershey. 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 Hershey total about $4.1M 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.