Photo: Nicholas A. Tonelli from Northeast Pennsylvania, USA · CC BY 2.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Asylum Township than in 72% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Asylum Township gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 72% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). Flood insurance has paid 26 claims here since 1979.
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 Asylum Township 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
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 Asylum Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 95% of the building damage FEMA expects in Asylum Township, and Asylum Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 72% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Asylum Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $579K a year in losses across Asylum Township: $521K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Asylum Township flood? Sometimes: 26 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Asylum Township, from FEMA’s records: 54.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 93% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Lee12 claims · $335K
- Tropical Storm Ivan2 claims · $13K
Asylum Township isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Bradford County.The storms Asylum Township remembers
None of the 17 disasters declared for Bradford County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Asylum Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 201112 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Storm Lee, declared for Bradford County
- 19792 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19832 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Bradford County has had 17 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.
Old photos of Asylum Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Asylum Township archive →Asylum Township and its neighbors
Asylum Township is 2nd of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wysox Township | Cmore damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 24 |
| Asylum Township | Cmore damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 26 |
| Wyalusing Township | Cmore damage than 73% | river and rain flooding | 33 |
| Standing Stone Township | — | 771 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Terry Township | — | 760 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Albany Township | — | 983 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
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 Asylum Township 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.
- 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 Asylum Township
Is Asylum Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Asylum Township has higher expected damage per building than 72% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). 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 Asylum Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 26 claims in Asylum Township since 1979, $468K in all, or 54.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 93% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (12).
Is Asylum Township 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 Bradford County, 26% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Asylum Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Asylum Township’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 Asylum Township?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 12 paid, $335K.
Is Asylum Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (95%), and Asylum Township’s rate for it is higher than 86% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Asylum Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Asylum Township’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.