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Melson HouseMelson House · Photo: Linda Roy Walls · CC BY-SA 4.0
BHazard risk
Natural hazards in Bridgeville · FEMA

FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Bridgeville than in 65% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bridgeville gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns, #19 of 37 in Delaware. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (69%), then hurricanes (24%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 69%Hurricanes 24%Earthquakes 3%

Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded

less than 65%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#19 of 37 in Delaware
Hazard risk
B#19 of 37
in Delaware · lower than 65% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
69% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
6
of 15 declared for Sussex County
By hazard

What Bridgeville faces

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

River and rain flooding

69%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

24%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 8 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Strong wind Ice storms Wildfire Winter storms Lightning Hail Coastal flooding Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 15% of Bridgeville’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Bridgeville’s grade

River and rain flooding is 69% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bridgeville, and Bridgeville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 24% (higher than 84% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Bridgeville sits
Bridgeville
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B #19 of 37 in Delaware; lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Bridgeville’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding69%Hurricanes24%Earthquakes3%Everything else5%

The typical Delaware town has lower expected damage than 65% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bridgeville has more expected damage per building than 50% of Delaware towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Bridgeville: $702K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Bridgeville’s 2,568 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Bridgeville flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Bridgeville. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

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

Bridgeville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Sussex County.
Disasters

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bridgeville

Disasters that paid out in Bridgeville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Bridgeville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2012Hurricane Sandy$2K to the Town of Bridgeville for repairs
  2. 2011Hurricane Irene$12K to the Town of Bridgeville for repairs
  3. 2010Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorms$11K to the Town of Bridgeville for repairs
  4. 2006Severe Storms and Flooding$13K to the Town of Bridgeville for repairs
  5. 2003Hurricane Isabel9 households applied for aid$10K aid approved$2K to the Town of Bridgeville for repairs
  6. 2003Snow$4K to the Town of Bridgeville for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BridgevilleSussex County only

Sussex County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

Old photos of Bridgeville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Bridgeville archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Bridgeville faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Hurricane season
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Bridgeville

Is Bridgeville at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bridgeville has lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #19 of 37 in Delaware. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (69%) and hurricanes (24%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Is Bridgeville in a flood zone?

Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Sussex County, 61% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 12.7% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Bridgeville?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bridgeville’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

What was the biggest storm in Bridgeville?

By FEMA money that reached Bridgeville, Severe Storms and Flooding (2006): $13K to the Town of Bridgeville for repairs.

Is Bridgeville at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (69%), and Bridgeville’s rate for it is lower than 57% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bridgeville.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bridgeville’s residents lived in the 2020 census; 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. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.