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Daniel Steckel HouseDaniel Steckel House · Photo: Shuvaev · CC BY-SA 3.0
C+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Bath · FEMA

More hazard damage per building is expected in Bath than in 60% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bath gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns, #838 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 2011.

River and rain flooding 87%Hurricanes 6%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

more than 60%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#838 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania
Hazard risk
C+#838 of 1,037
in Pennsylvania · higher than 60% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
87% of expected building damage
Flood claims
4
paid since 2011 · $49K
Disasters paid out here
5
of 18 declared for Northampton County
By hazard

What Bath 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

87%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 17 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Strong wind Winter storms Lightning Hail Wildfire Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
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 Bath’s grade

River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bath, and Bath’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 6% (higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Bath sits
Bath
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C+ #838 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding87%Hurricanes6%Earthquakes3%Everything else5%

The typical Pennsylvania town has lower expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bath has more expected damage per building than 81% of Pennsylvania towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $776K a year in losses across Bath: $627K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Bath’s 2,808 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 Bath flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 2011

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bath, from FEMA’s records: 3.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 51% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2011: 3 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 1 claim2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims20112020
20112026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Isaias1 claim · $6K
4
paid claims since 2011
$49K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$12K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Northampton County.
Disasters

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bath

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

  1. 2011Tropical Storm Lee41 households applied for aid$97K aid approved
  2. 2011Hurricane Irene21 households applied for aid$24K aid approved
  3. 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides1 households applied for aid$149 aid approved
  4. 2005Severe Storms and Flooding5 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
  5. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan73 households applied for aid$225K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BathNorthampton County only

Northampton County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe 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 Bath after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Bath archive →
Next door

Bath and its neighbors

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

East Allen Township: hazard risk BUpper Nazareth Township: hazard risk BEast Allen TownshipUpper Nazareth TownshipBath
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
East Allen TownshipBless damage than 61%river and rain flooding6
Upper Nazareth TownshipBless damage than 56%river and rain flooding3
BathC+more damage than 60%river and rain flooding4

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 Bath 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 Bath

Is Bath at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bath has higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk, #838 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%) and hurricanes (6%). 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 Bath flood?

Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Bath since 2011, $49K in all, or 3.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 51% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Isaias (1).

Is Bath 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 Northampton County, 39% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Bath?

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

By FEMA money that reached Bath, Tropical Depression Ivan (2004): 73 households applied for aid, $225K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Isaias: 1 paid, $6K.

Is Bath at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Bath’s rate for it is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bath.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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