Photo: Shuvaev · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Falls Township than in 74% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Falls Township gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 74% of U.S. towns, #492 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%). Flood insurance has paid 117 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 stands out about Falls Township’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Falls 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
Earthquakes
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 Falls Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 78% of the building damage FEMA expects in Falls Township, and Falls Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts. Next is earthquakes at 8% (higher than 68% of U.S. census tracts).
B+ #492 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; lower expected damage per building than 74% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Falls Township’s residents live in 9 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, Falls Township has less expected damage per building than 53% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $7.9M a year in losses across Falls Township: $6.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Falls Township flood? Yes: 117 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Falls Township, from FEMA’s records: 8.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 71% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Ivan11 claims · $224K
- Tropical Storm Lee11 claims · $859K
- Hurricane Irene7 claims · $374K
Falls 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: Bucks County.The storms Falls Township remembers
None of the 21 disasters declared for Bucks County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Falls Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 199625 flood claims paidThe year of Flooding, Severe Storms, declared for Bucks County
- 201118 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Storm Lee, declared for Bucks County
- 197911 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Bucks County has had 21 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Falls Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Falls Township archive →Falls Township and its neighbors
Falls Township is 2nd of the 10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Middletown Township | A−less damage than 79% | river and rain flooding | 273 |
| Falls Township | B+less damage than 74% | river and rain flooding | 117 |
| Lower Makefield Township | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 186 |
| Bristol Township | B−less damage than 52% | river and rain flooding | 292 |
| Tullytown | C+more damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Hamilton Township | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 247 |
| Bordentown Township | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Morrisville | Cmore damage than 71% | river and rain flooding | 10 |
| Trenton | C−more damage than 84% | river and rain flooding | 830 |
| Florence Township | Dmore damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Levittown | — | 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 Falls 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Falls Township
Is Falls Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Falls Township has lower expected damage per building than 74% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #492 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%) and earthquakes (8%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Falls Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 117 claims in Falls Township since 1978, $2.3M in all, or 8.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 71% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 16 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Ivan (11).
Is Falls 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 Bucks County, 49% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Falls Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Falls 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 Falls Township?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Ivan: 11 paid, $224K.
Is Falls Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (78%), and Falls Township’s rate for it is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Falls Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Falls 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.