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B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Dalton · FEMA

FEMA expects about as much hazard damage per building in Dalton as in the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Dalton gets a B− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). Flood insurance has paid 10 claims here since 1983.

River and rain flooding 93%Hurricanes 3%Tornadoes 2%

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

more than 55%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B−
in Pennsylvania · higher than 55% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
93% of expected building damage
Flood claims
10
paid since 1983 · $87K
Disasters paid out here
4
of 18 declared for Lackawanna County
By hazard

What Dalton 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

93%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Hail Wildfire Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides Lightning
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 Dalton’s grade

River and rain flooding is 93% of the building damage FEMA expects in Dalton, and Dalton’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts.

Where Dalton sits
Dalton
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− higher expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding93%Hurricanes3%Everything else4%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $498K a year in losses across Dalton: $428K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Dalton’s 1,284 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Glenburn township (1,434 residents) and Glenburn CDP (1,148 residents) and North Abington township (706 residents) and La Plume township (476 residents) and West Abington township (300 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 Dalton flood? Sometimes: 10 flood claims since 1983

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Dalton, from FEMA’s records: 16.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 82% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1983: 1 claim1984: 1 claim1985: 1 claim1986: 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: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 1 claim2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 6 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198319842023
19832026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Gloria1 claim · $2K
10
paid claims since 1983
$87K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$9K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Lackawanna County.
Disasters

4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Dalton

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

  1. 2011Tropical Storm Lee3 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
  2. 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides20 households applied for aid$47K aid approved
  3. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan11 households applied for aid$26K aid approved
  4. 2003Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding21 households applied for aid$29K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in DaltonLackawanna County only

Lackawanna County has had 18 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 Dalton after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Dalton archive →
Next door

Dalton and its neighbors

Dalton is 3rd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

North Abington Township: not gradedGlenburn Township: hazard risk B−West Abington Township: not gradedWaverly Township: hazard risk ALa Plume Township: not gradedNorth Abington TownshipGlenburn TownshipWest Abington TownshipWaverly TownshipLa Plume TownshipDalton
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Waverly TownshipAless damage than 88%river and rain flooding6
Glenburn TownshipB−more damage than 55%river and rain flooding2
DaltonB−more damage than 55%river and rain flooding10
North Abington Township—944 residents; we grade 1,000+
West Abington Township—290 residents; we grade 1,000+
La Plume Township—454 residents; we grade 1,000+

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 Dalton 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 Dalton

Is Dalton at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Dalton has higher expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). 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 Dalton flood?

Flood insurance has paid 10 claims in Dalton since 1983, $87K in all, or 16.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 82% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Gloria (1).

Is Dalton 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 Lackawanna County, 29% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Dalton?

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

By FEMA money that reached Dalton, Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides (2006): 20 households applied for aid, $47K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Gloria: 1 paid, $2K.

Is Dalton at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (93%), and Dalton’s rate for it is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Dalton.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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