Photo: formulanone · CC BY-SA 2.0On FEMA’s figures, Highspire faces more hazard damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Highspire gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns, #1,011 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). Flood insurance has paid 211 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 Highspire’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Highspire 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
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 Highspire’s grade
River and rain flooding is 93% of the building damage FEMA expects in Highspire, and Highspire’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
D #1,011 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; higher expected damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Highspire’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Pennsylvania town has lower expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Highspire has more expected damage per building than 97% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.5M a year in losses across Highspire: $1.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Highspire flood? Yes: 211 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Highspire, from FEMA’s records: 146.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 97% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Lee87 claims · $931K
- Tropical Storm Ivan29 claims · $184K
- Hurricane Irene10 claims · $1.0M
Highspire isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Dauphin County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Highspire
Disasters that paid out in Highspire itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Highspire), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Tropical Storm Lee231 households applied for aid$393K aid approved87 flood claims paid for it, $931K
- 2004Tropical Depression Ivan35 households applied for aid$59K aid approved29 flood claims paid for it, $184K
Dauphin County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Highspire after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Highspire archive →Highspire and its neighbors
Highspire is 3rd 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Swatara Township | A−less damage than 77% | river and rain flooding | 91 |
| Steelton | C−more damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 140 |
| Highspire | Dmore damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 211 |
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 Highspire 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.
- 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 Highspire
Is Highspire at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Highspire has higher expected damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #1,011 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. 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 Highspire flood?
Flood insurance has paid 211 claims in Highspire since 1978, $2.6M in all, or 146.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 97% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 30 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (87).
Is Highspire 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 Dauphin County, 26% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Highspire?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Highspire’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 Highspire?
By FEMA money that reached Highspire, Tropical Storm Lee (2011): 231 households applied for aid, $393K approved. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 87 paid, $931K.
Is Highspire at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (93%), and Highspire’s rate for it is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Highspire.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Highspire’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.