Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY-SA 4.0More hazard damage per building is expected in Brooklawn than in 76% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Brooklawn gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%), then coastal flooding (22%). Flood insurance has paid 21 claims here since 1980.
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
What stands out about Brooklawn’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Brooklawn 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
Coastal flooding
Earthquakes
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.
What’s behind Brooklawn’s grade
River and rain flooding is 67% of the building damage FEMA expects in Brooklawn, and Brooklawn’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 22%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
C− higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Brooklawn’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $723K a year in losses across Brooklawn: $609K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Brooklawn flood? Sometimes: 21 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Brooklawn, from FEMA’s records: 22.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 85% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Sandy3 claims · $92K
- The December Storm - nor’easter2 claims · $16K
- The April 2007 nor’easter2 claims · $5K
Brooklawn isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Camden County.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Brooklawn
Disasters that paid out in Brooklawn itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Brooklawn), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2012Hurricane Sandy8 households applied for aid$3K aid approved$6K to the Borough of Brooklawn for repairs3 flood claims paid for it, $92K
- 2011Hurricane Irene22 households applied for aid$14K aid approved$3K to the Borough of Brooklawn for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $3K
- 2010Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$6K to the Borough of Brooklawn for repairs
- 2009Snowstorm$6K to the Borough of Brooklawn for repairs
- 2007Severe Storms and Inland and Coastal Flooding6 households applied for aid$4K aid approved$2K to the Borough of Brooklawn for repairs2 flood claims paid that year
- 2004Severe Storms and Flooding1 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
Camden County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees; the 2001 World Trade Center declarations.
Old photos of Brooklawn after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Brooklawn archive →Brooklawn and its neighbors
Brooklawn is 4th of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bellmawr | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 15 |
| Gloucester City | C+more damage than 57% | river and rain flooding | 21 |
| Westville | Cmore damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 61 |
| Brooklawn | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 21 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Brooklawn faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, 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.
- Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
- Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
- Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
Questions about natural hazards in Brooklawn
Is Brooklawn at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Brooklawn has higher expected damage per building than 76% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (67%) and coastal flooding (22%). 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.
Does Brooklawn flood?
Flood insurance has paid 21 claims in Brooklawn since 1980, $322K in all, or 22.1 per 1,000 homes, more than 85% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Sandy (3).
Is Brooklawn 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 Camden County, 34% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Brooklawn?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Brooklawn’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 Brooklawn?
By FEMA money that reached Brooklawn, Hurricane Irene (2011): 22 households applied for aid, $14K approved, and $3K to the Borough of Brooklawn for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Sandy: 3 paid, $92K.
Is Brooklawn at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (67%), and Brooklawn’s rate for it is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Brooklawn.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Brooklawn’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.