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Natural hazards · Swatara

Swatara, PA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Swatara comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 312 claims here since 1978. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Swatara?

28
Low
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Swatara to be higher than in 28% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding68%Hurricanes9%Tornadoes5%Everything else18%
By hazard

What Swatara faces

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

Inland flooding

68% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 49% of U.S. places
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

9% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 79% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 14 years in the area

Tornadoes

5% of expected damage
Below average · higher than 48% of U.S. places

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong 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 Swatara flood?

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

312paid claims since 1978
$6.1Mpaid to owners
59homes flooded more than once
19782026

Biggest named events

  • Tropical Storm Lee: 108 claims, $4.4M
  • Tropical Storm Ivan: 41 claims, $410K
  • Not a named storm: 24 claims, $45K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (5) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Swatara 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 Swatara

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Swatara itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the Township of Swatara.

Brought FEMA money into SwataraDeclared for Dauphin County only
2004

Tropical Depression Ivan

1 household applied for aid $4K aid approved
Dauphin County has had 18 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and hurricanes.
Around Swatara

Swatara and the towns around it

Steelton: High, mostly inland floodingFairview: Low, mostly inland floodingLower Swatara: Low, mostly inland floodingPaxtang: Moderate, mostly inland floodingSouth Hanover: Moderate, mostly inland floodingNew Cumberland: Very high, mostly inland floodingLower Paxton: Low, mostly inland floodingDerry: Low, mostly inland floodingHarrisburg: High, mostly inland floodingHummelstown: Moderate, mostly inland floodingSusquehanna: Moderate, mostly inland floodingHighspire: Very high, mostly inland floodingLower Allen: Low, mostly inland floodingWarrington: Low, mostly inland floodingMonaghan: Low, mostly inland floodingNewberry: Moderate, mostly inland floodingLewisberry: Moderate, mostly inland floodingUpper Allen: Very low, mostly inland floodingMiddletown: High, mostly inland floodingLondonderry: Moderate, mostly inland floodingEast Hanover: Moderate, mostly inland floodingWest Hanover: Low, mostly inland floodingLemoyne: Low, mostly inland floodingMiddle Paxton: High, mostly inland floodingPalmyra: Very low, mostly inland floodingNorth Londonderry: Low, mostly inland floodingConewago: Very low, mostly inland floodingEast Pennsboro: Low, mostly inland floodingWormleysburg: High, mostly inland floodingMarysville: High, mostly inland floodingSwatara: Low, mostly inland flooding SwataraSteeltonFairviewLower SwataraPaxtangSouth HanoverNew CumberlandLower PaxtonDerryHarrisburgHummelstownSusquehanna
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
New Cumberlandmostly inland floodingVery high
Steeltonmostly inland floodingHigh
Harrisburgmostly inland floodingHigh
Paxtangmostly inland floodingModerate
Hummelstownmostly inland floodingModerate
South Hanovermostly inland floodingModerate
Susquehannamostly inland floodingModerate
Lower Paxtonmostly inland floodingLow
Swataramostly inland floodingLow
Fairviewmostly inland floodingLow
Lower Swataramostly inland floodingLow
Derrymostly inland floodingLow
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. Swatara covers 6 census tracts, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Swatara’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Swatara. 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 Swatara total about $6.8M 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.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/15 · 2025-01-01
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