Photo: Shuvaev · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Cressona faces less hazard damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cressona gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). Flood insurance has paid 9 claims here since 1982.
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 Cressona 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
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 Cressona’s grade
River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Cressona, and Cressona’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 6% (higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts).
B lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Cressona’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $599K a year in losses across Cressona: $489K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Cressona flood? Rarely: 9 flood claims since 1982
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Cressona, from FEMA’s records: 14.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 80% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Lee1 claim · $6K
Cressona isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Schuylkill County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Cressona
Disasters that paid out in Cressona itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Cressona), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Tropical Storm Lee3 households applied for aid$3K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $6K
- 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides33 households applied for aid$44K aid approved6 flood claims paid that year
- 2004Tropical Depression Ivan5 households applied for aid$8K aid approved
Schuylkill County has had 20 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 Cressona after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Cressona archive →Cressona and its neighbors
Cressona is 2nd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Manheim Township | Bless damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Cressona | Bless damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Schuylkill Haven | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 76 |
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 Cressona 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.
- 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 Cressona
Is Cressona at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Cressona has lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%) 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 Cressona flood?
Flood insurance has paid 9 claims in Cressona since 1982, $47K in all, or 14.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 80% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (1).
Is Cressona 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 Schuylkill County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Cressona?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Cressona’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 Cressona?
By FEMA money that reached Cressona, Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides (2006): 33 households applied for aid, $44K approved. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 1 paid, $6K.
Is Cressona at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Cressona’s rate for it is higher than 59% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Cressona.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Cressona’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.