Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Archbald

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
Archbald potholePhoto: Jared Kofsky/PlaceNJ.com · CC BY-SA 4.0
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Archbald · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Archbald faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Archbald gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns, #810 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). Flood insurance has paid 32 claims here since 1980.

River and rain flooding 93%Hurricanes 3%Tornadoes 2%

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

more than 56%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#810 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania
Hazard risk
C+#810 of 1,037
in Pennsylvania · higher than 56% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
93% of expected building damage
Flood claims
32
paid since 1980 · $236K
Flooded more than once
3
properties · 1 “severe repetitive loss”
Disasters paid out here
3
of 18 declared for Lackawanna County
By hazard

What Archbald 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

93%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 77% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Hail Winter storms Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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 Archbald’s grade

River and rain flooding is 93% of the building damage FEMA expects in Archbald, and Archbald’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 77% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Archbald sits
Archbald
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ #810 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; higher expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding93%Hurricanes3%Everything else4%

The typical Pennsylvania town has lower expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Archbald has more expected damage per building than 78% of Pennsylvania towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.7M a year in losses across Archbald: $2.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Archbald’s 7,297 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 Archbald flood? Sometimes: 32 flood claims since 1980

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Archbald, from FEMA’s records: 9.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 73% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1980: 1 claim1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 3 claims1986: 1 claim1987: 1 claim1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 1 claim1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 5 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 3 claims2004: 1 claim2005: 2 claims2006: 11 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 2 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 1 claim2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198519962006
19802026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Gloria3 claims · $7K
  • The December nor’easter1 claim · $9K
  • Tropical Storm Ivan1 claim · $18K
32
paid claims since 1980
$236K
paid to owners
3
homes flooded more than once
$7K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Lackawanna County.
Disasters

3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Archbald

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

  1. 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides51 households applied for aid$78K aid approved11 flood claims paid that year
  2. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan10 households applied for aid$18K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $18K
  3. 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding2 households applied for aid$9K aid approved3 flood claims paid that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in ArchbaldLackawanna County only

Lackawanna County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Archbald archive →
Next door

Archbald and its neighbors

Archbald is 3rd of the 7 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Blakely: hazard risk C−Jermyn: hazard risk DJessup: hazard risk C+Jefferson Township: hazard risk AScott Township: hazard risk A−Mayfield: hazard risk DBlakelyJermynJessupJefferson TownshipScott TownshipMayfieldArchbald
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Jefferson TownshipAless damage than 88%river and rain flooding—
Scott TownshipA−less damage than 82%river and rain flooding7
ArchbaldC+more damage than 56%river and rain flooding32
JessupC+more damage than 65%river and rain flooding16
BlakelyC−more damage than 81%river and rain flooding11
JermynDmore damage than 88%river and rain flooding43
MayfieldDmore damage than 93%river and rain flooding16

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Archbald 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 ↗
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 Archbald

Is Archbald at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Archbald has higher expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #810 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). 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 Archbald flood?

Flood insurance has paid 32 claims in Archbald since 1980, $236K in all, or 9.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 73% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 3 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Gloria (3).

Is Archbald 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 Lackawanna County, 29% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Archbald?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Archbald’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 Archbald?

By FEMA money that reached Archbald, Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides (2006): 51 households applied for aid, $78K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Gloria: 3 paid, $7K.

Is Archbald at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (93%), and Archbald’s rate for it is higher than 77% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Archbald.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Archbald’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.