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Middleburg, PennsylvaniaPhoto: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0
B−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Middleburg · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Middleburg faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Middleburg gets a B− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). Flood insurance has paid 49 claims here since 1978.

River and rain flooding 86%Hurricanes 6%Tornadoes 3%

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

less than 51%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 · lower than 51% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
86% of expected building damage
Flood claims
49
paid since 1978 · $298K
Flooded more than once
4
properties · 1 “severe repetitive loss”
Disasters paid out here
2
of 13 declared for Snyder County
By hazard

What Middleburg 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

86%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once a year in the area

Hurricanes

6%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 71% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 16 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Strong wind Earthquakes Hail Winter storms Ice storms Wildfire 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 Middleburg’s grade

River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Middleburg, and Middleburg’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 6% (higher than 71% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Middleburg sits
Middleburg
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B− lower expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding86%Hurricanes6%Tornadoes3%Everything else5%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $435K a year in losses across Middleburg: $358K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Middleburg’s 1,325 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Center township (2,413 residents) and Franklin township (2,213 residents) and Penns Creek CDP (694 residents) and Paxtonville CDP (314 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 Middleburg flood? Sometimes: 49 flood claims since 1978

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Middleburg, from FEMA’s records: 81.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 95% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1978: 10 claims1979: 9 claims1980: 0 claims1981: 4 claims1982: 0 claims1983: 0 claims1984: 4 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 5 claims1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 16 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims197819792004
19782026
Biggest named events
  • Tropical Storm Ivan16 claims · $244K
  • Tropical Storm Lee1 claim · $2K
49
paid claims since 1978
$298K
paid to owners
4
homes flooded more than once
$6K
average claim
Homes that flooded again and again
FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1)Flooded 2+ times
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Snyder County.
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Middleburg

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

  1. 2011Tropical Storm Lee11 households applied for aid$27K aid approved1 flood claim paid for it, $2K
  2. 2004Tropical Depression Ivan31 households applied for aid$36K aid approved16 flood claims paid for it, $244K
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in MiddleburgSnyder County only

Snyder County has had 13 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.

Were you here?

Old photos of Middleburg after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Middleburg archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Middleburg 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 ↗
Hurricane season
  • 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.
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 Middleburg

Is Middleburg at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Middleburg has lower expected damage per building than 51% of U.S. towns: B− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%) and hurricanes (6%). 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 Middleburg flood?

Flood insurance has paid 49 claims in Middleburg since 1978, $298K in all, or 81.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 95% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Ivan (16).

Is Middleburg 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 Snyder County, 21% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Middleburg?

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

By FEMA money that reached Middleburg, Tropical Depression Ivan (2004): 31 households applied for aid, $36K approved. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Ivan: 16 paid, $244K.

Is Middleburg at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Middleburg’s rate for it is higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Middleburg.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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