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MasseyHousePhoto: User:Smallbones on English Wikipedia. · Public domain
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Broomall · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Broomall

Broomall isn’t graded for hazard risk: Broomall is a Census area inside a town, graded with the town. Flood insurance has paid 45 claims here since 1978.

Flood claims
45
paid since 1978 · $2.4M
Disasters paid out here
0
of 19 declared for Delaware County
By hazard

What Broomall 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

71%of expected building damage
Well below average · lower than 91% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

10%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 62% of U.S. census tracts

Hurricanes

8%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 11 years in the area

Tornadoes

7%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 50% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Strong wind Winter storms Ice storms Lightning Hail Wildfire 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 heat waves at 11% of Broomall’s expected losses. Heat 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.
Flood insurance claims

Does Broomall flood? Sometimes: 45 flood claims since 1978

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Broomall, from FEMA’s records.

Paid flood claims, by year
1978: 1 claim1979: 0 claims1980: 1 claim1981: 0 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 0 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 4 claims2000: 1 claim2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 1 claim2004: 6 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 8 claims2011: 5 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 5 claims2019: 2 claims2020: 11 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims200420102020
19782026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Isaias10 claims · $1.0M
  • Hurricane Irene5 claims · $281K
  • Hurricane Floyd3 claims · $107K
45
paid claims since 1978
$2.4M
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$54K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Delaware County.
Disasters

The storms Broomall remembers

None of the 19 disasters declared for Delaware County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Broomall itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 202011 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 20108 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorms, declared for Delaware County
  3. 20046 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Depression Ivan, declared for Delaware County
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in BroomallDelaware County only

Delaware County has had 19 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Broomall archive →
Next door

Broomall and its neighbors

How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Marple TownshipA+less damage than 98%river and rain flooding44
Haverford TownshipAless damage than 88%river and rain flooding139

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 Broomall 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 ↗
Earthquakes
  • Drop, cover and hold on.
  • Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
  • Know how to shut off the gas.
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 ↗
Tornado warnings
  • 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.
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 Broomall

Does Broomall flood?

Flood insurance has paid 45 claims in Broomall since 1978, $2.4M in all. The most claims came from Hurricane Isaias (10).

Is Broomall 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 Delaware County, 39% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.7% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Broomall?

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

By flood claims, Hurricane Isaias: 10 paid, $1.0M.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Broomall.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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