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Bethel Presbyterian Church (Pennsylvania) 2Photo: Generic1139 · CC BY 3.0
A+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Bethel Park · FEMA

FEMA puts Bethel Park’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 98% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bethel Park gets an A+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns, #70 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). Flood insurance has paid 70 claims here since 1978.

River and rain flooding 91%Tornadoes 3%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

less than 98%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#70 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania
Hazard risk
A+#70 of 1,037
in Pennsylvania · lower than 98% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
91% of expected building damage
Flood claims
70
paid since 1978 · $1.2M
Disasters paid out here
1
of 15 declared for Allegheny County

What stands out about Bethel Park’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Lower expected damage than 98% of U.S. townsFEMA’s model of yearly storm and flood damage per dollar of building.Remembers 201817 flood claims were paid for 2018 alone, the most of any year.
By hazard

What Bethel Park 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

91%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 7 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Hurricanes Winter storms Hail Wildfire Ice storms Lightning Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 17% of Bethel Park’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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 Bethel Park’s grade

River and rain flooding is 91% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bethel Park, and Bethel Park’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Bethel Park sits
Bethel Park
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A+ #70 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Bethel Park’s residents live in 8 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding91%Tornadoes3%Earthquakes3%Everything else3%

The typical Pennsylvania town has lower expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bethel Park has less expected damage per building than 93% of Pennsylvania towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.1M a year in losses across Bethel Park: $3.8M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A firm figure. It combines 8 census tracts by where Bethel Park’s residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Bethel Park flood? Sometimes: 70 flood claims since 1978

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bethel Park, from FEMA’s records: 4.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 57% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1978: 1 claim1979: 1 claim1980: 4 claims1981: 14 claims1982: 1 claim1983: 5 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 2 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 1 claim1995: 2 claims1996: 1 claim1997: 1 claim1998: 2 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 1 claim2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 3 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 1 claim2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 5 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 3 claims2018: 17 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 4 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 1 claim2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198119832018
19782026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Ida3 claims · $36K
  • Tropical Storm Ivan3 claims · $91K
70
paid claims since 1978
$1.2M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$17K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Allegheny County.
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Bethel Park

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

  1. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan59 households applied for aid$104K aid approved3 flood claims paid for it, $91K
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Bethel ParkAllegheny County only

Allegheny County has had 15 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 Bethel Park after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Bethel Park archive →
Next door

Bethel Park and its neighbors

Bethel Park is 2nd of the 8 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

South Park Township: hazard risk B+Upper St. Clair Township: hazard risk A+Baldwin: hazard risk A+Castle Shannon: hazard risk A−Peters Township: hazard risk AWhitehall: hazard risk A+Mount Lebanon: hazard risk A+South Park TownshipUpper St. Clair TownshipBaldwinCastle ShannonPeters TownshipWhitehallMount LebanonBethel Park
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Mount LebanonA+less damage than 98%river and rain flooding12
Bethel ParkA+less damage than 98%river and rain flooding70
BaldwinA+less damage than 96%river and rain flooding44
WhitehallA+less damage than 96%river and rain flooding7
Upper St. Clair TownshipA+less damage than 95%river and rain flooding32
Peters TownshipAless damage than 94%river and rain flooding20
Castle ShannonA−less damage than 82%river and rain flooding30
South Park TownshipB+less damage than 72%river and rain flooding53

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 Bethel Park 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 Bethel Park

Is Bethel Park at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bethel Park has lower expected damage per building than 98% of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk, #70 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (91%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Bethel Park flood?

Flood insurance has paid 70 claims in Bethel Park since 1978, $1.2M in all, or 4.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 57% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Ida (3).

Is Bethel Park 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 Allegheny County, 28% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Bethel Park?

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

By FEMA money that reached Bethel Park, Tropical Depression Ivan (2004): 59 households applied for aid, $104K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Ida: 3 paid, $36K.

Is Bethel Park at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (91%), and Bethel Park’s rate for it is lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bethel Park.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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