Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ MD · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Bern Township faces less hazard damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bern Township gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns, #313 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%), then hurricanes (13%). Flood insurance has paid 15 claims here since 1978.
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 Bern 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
Hurricanes
Tornadoes
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 Bern Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 73% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bern Township, and Bern Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 73% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 13% (higher than 80% of U.S. census tracts).
A #313 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; lower expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Bern Township’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Pennsylvania town has lower expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bern Township has less expected damage per building than 70% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.1M a year in losses across Bern Township: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Bern Township flood? Sometimes: 15 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bern Township, from FEMA’s records: 6.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 65% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Ida2 claims · $64K
- Tropical Storm Lee1 claim · $24K
Bern 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: Berks County.The storms Bern Township remembers
None of the 19 disasters declared for Berks County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Bern Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19793 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19833 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 20062 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides, declared for Berks County
Berks County has had 19 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 Bern Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bern Township archive →Bern Township and its neighbors
Bern Township has the lowest expected damage per building of the 9 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bern Township | Aless damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | 15 |
| Spring Township | Aless damage than 85% | river and rain flooding | 38 |
| Muhlenberg Township | A−less damage than 77% | river and rain flooding | 134 |
| Wyomissing | B+less damage than 74% | river and rain flooding | 17 |
| Lower Heidelberg Township | B+less damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Penn Township | B+less damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Ontelaunee Township | B+less damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | 37 |
| Reading | Bless damage than 61% | river and rain flooding | 88 |
| Leesport | C+more damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | 16 |
| Greenfields | — | 986 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Riverview Park | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
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 Bern 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.
- 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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 Bern Township
Is Bern Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bern Township has lower expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #313 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%) and hurricanes (13%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Bern Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 15 claims in Bern Township since 1978, $207K in all, or 6.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 65% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Ida (2).
Is Bern 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 Berks County, 34% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.5% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Bern Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bern 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 Bern Township?
By flood claims, Hurricane Ida: 2 paid, $64K.
Is Bern Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (73%), and Bern Township’s rate for it is lower than 73% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bern Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bern 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.