Photo: Purple pirouette · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA expects less hazard damage per building in Hopewell Township than in 86% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hopewell Township gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns, #315 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%), then hurricanes (21%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Hopewell 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
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 Hopewell Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 72% of the building damage FEMA expects in Hopewell Township, and Hopewell Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 74% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 21% (higher than 83% of U.S. census tracts).
A #315 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; lower expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Hopewell Township’s residents live in 2 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, Hopewell Township has less expected damage per building than 70% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Hopewell Township: $784K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Hopewell Township flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Hopewell Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Hopewell 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: York County.The storms Hopewell Township remembers
None of the 17 disasters declared for York County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Hopewell Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
York County has had 17 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Hopewell Township and its neighbors
Hopewell Township is 2nd of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shrewsbury | Aless damage than 92% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Hopewell Township | Aless damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Fawn Township | A−less damage than 77% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Shrewsbury Township | B+less damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 19 |
| East Hopewell Township | Bless damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| North Hopewell Township | B−less damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
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 Hopewell 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.
- 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 Hopewell Township
Is Hopewell Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Hopewell Township has lower expected damage per building than 86% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #315 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (72%) and hurricanes (21%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Hopewell 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 York County, 30% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Hopewell Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Hopewell Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Hopewell Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (72%), and Hopewell Township’s rate for it is lower than 74% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Hopewell Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Hopewell 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.