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A+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Berlin · FEMA

FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Berlin than almost anywhere in the U.S., mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Berlin gets an A+ for hazard risk: among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 83%Hurricanes 5%Tornadoes 4%

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

among the lowestof U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A+
in Pennsylvania · among the lowest of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
83% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
1
of 17 declared for Somerset County
By hazard

What Berlin 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

83%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 93% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Earthquakes Hail Strong wind Winter storms Wildfire Ice storms Lightning 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 Berlin’s grade

River and rain flooding is 83% of the building damage FEMA expects in Berlin, and Berlin’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 93% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Berlin sits
Berlin
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A+ among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding83%Hurricanes5%Tornadoes4%Everything else8%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $323K a year in losses across Berlin: $254K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Berlin’s 2,003 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Brothersvalley township (2,379 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. 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 Berlin flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Berlin. 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

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

Insurance rates: Somerset County.
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Berlin

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

  1. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan3 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BerlinSomerset County only

Somerset County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Berlin archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Berlin 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 Berlin

Is Berlin at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Berlin has among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%). 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 Berlin 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 Somerset County, 16% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Berlin?

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

By FEMA money that reached Berlin, Tropical Depression Ivan (2004): 3 households applied for aid, $4K approved.

Is Berlin at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (83%), and Berlin’s rate for it is lower than 93% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Berlin.

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