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Mont Alto, PennsylvaniaPhoto: Dincher · CC BY-SA 3.0
A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Mont Alto · FEMA

Less hazard damage per building is expected in Mont Alto than in 78% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mont Alto gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 83%Hurricanes 10%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 78%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
A−
in Pennsylvania · lower than 78% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
83% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
1
of 16 declared for Franklin County
By hazard

What Mont Alto 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

83%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 55% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

10%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 14 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Hail Wildfire Strong wind Ice storms Lightning Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
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 Mont Alto’s grade

River and rain flooding is 83% of the building damage FEMA expects in Mont Alto, and Mont Alto’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 55% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 10% (higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Mont Alto sits
Mont Alto
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− lower expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns (21,298).

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

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding83%Hurricanes10%Everything else7%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $308K a year in losses across Mont Alto: $250K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Mont Alto’s 1,580 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. 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 Mont Alto flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Mont Alto. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Franklin County.
Disasters

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Mont Alto

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

  1. 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides3 households applied for aid$727 aid approved
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Mont AltoFranklin County only

Franklin County has had 16 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.

Were you here?

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

Add to the Mont Alto archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Mont Alto 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 Mont Alto

Is Mont Alto at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mont Alto has lower expected damage per building than 78% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (83%) and hurricanes (10%). 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.

Is Mont Alto 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 Franklin County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Mont Alto?

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

By FEMA money that reached Mont Alto, Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides (2006): 3 households applied for aid, $727 approved.

Is Mont Alto at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (83%), and Mont Alto’s rate for it is lower than 55% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Mont Alto.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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