Union’s biggest natural hazard is inland flooding
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Union comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 25 claims here since 1984.
What stands out about Union’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
Union and its neighbors
Union has the lowest rating of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Rating | Mostly | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson | Moderate | inland flooding | 0 |
| Lower Mahanoy | Moderate | inland flooding | 6 |
| Herndon | Moderate | inland flooding | 52 |
| Lower Augusta | Moderate | inland flooding | 5 |
| Penn | Moderate | inland flooding | 0 |
| Union | Moderate | inland flooding | 25 |
| Chapman | Moderate | inland flooding | 18 |
| Washington | Moderate | inland flooding | 0 |
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.
How exposed is Union?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 41% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.
Rated higher than 1,325 of the 2,558 Pennsylvania towns we cover.
Union covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
What Union faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Inland flooding
Hurricanes
Strong wind
Tornadoes
Does Union flood? Sometimes: 25 flood claims since 1984
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Union, from FEMA’s records.
- Tropical Storm Lee7 claims · $244K
- Tropical Storm Ivan6 claims · $140K
Union isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Snyder County.Federal disasters declared here
None of the disasters declared for Snyder County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Union itself in FEMA’s records.
Snyder County has had 14 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and hurricanes.
Get ready for what Union 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.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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.
Most disasters here begin in September–October
The month each of Snyder County’s 14 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 Union’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Union.
- 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 Union, expected losses total about $1.4M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Union.
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.