Photo: Peetlesnumber1 · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Glenside
Glenside isn’t graded for hazard risk: Glenside is a Census area inside a town, graded with the town. Flood insurance has paid 70 claims here since 1989.
What Glenside 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
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.
Does Glenside flood? Sometimes: 70 flood claims since 1989
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Glenside, from FEMA’s records.
- Tropical Storm Lee23 claims · $211K
- Tropical Storm Allison12 claims · $96K
- Hurricane Irene6 claims · $39K
Glenside isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Montgomery County.The storms Glenside remembers
None of the 23 disasters declared for Montgomery County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Glenside itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 201130 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Storm Lee, declared for Montgomery County
- 200112 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Storm Allison, declared for Montgomery County
- 199610 flood claims paidThe year of Flooding Associated with Tropical Depression Fran, declared for Montgomery County
Montgomery County has had 23 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 Glenside after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Glenside archive →Glenside and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jenkintown | A+less damage than 96% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Abington Township | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 295 |
| Cheltenham Township | A−less damage than 78% | river and rain flooding | 291 |
| Wyncote | — | 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 Glenside 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.
- 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 Glenside
Does Glenside flood?
Flood insurance has paid 70 claims in Glenside since 1989, $656K in all. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (23).
Is Glenside 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 Montgomery County, 47% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Glenside?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Glenside’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 Glenside?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 23 paid, $211K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Glenside.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Glenside’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.