Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Paxtang faces more hazard damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Paxtang gets a C+ for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). Flood insurance has paid 37 claims here since 1979.
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 Paxtang 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 Paxtang’s grade
River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Paxtang, and Paxtang’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 7% (higher than 79% of U.S. census tracts).
C+ higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Paxtang’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $593K a year in losses across Paxtang: $449K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Paxtang flood? Sometimes: 37 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Paxtang, from FEMA’s records: 52.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 93% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Lee7 claims · $47K
- Tropical Storm Ivan2 claims · $12K
Paxtang 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.The storms Paxtang remembers
None of the 17 disasters declared for Dauphin County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Paxtang itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 201112 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Storm Lee, declared for Dauphin County
- 19793 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19993 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Depression Dennis Pa, declared for Dauphin County
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 Paxtang after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Paxtang archive →Paxtang and its neighbors
Paxtang is 2nd 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swatara Township | B+less damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 312 |
| Paxtang | C+more damage than 60% | river and rain flooding | 37 |
| Harrisburg | C−more damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 1,516 |
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 Paxtang 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 Paxtang
Is Paxtang at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Paxtang has higher expected damage per building than 60% of U.S. towns: C+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%) and hurricanes (7%). 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 Paxtang flood?
Flood insurance has paid 37 claims in Paxtang since 1979, $237K in all, or 52.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 93% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 4 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (7).
Is Paxtang 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 Paxtang?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Paxtang’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 Paxtang?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 7 paid, $47K.
Is Paxtang at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Paxtang’s rate for it is higher than 76% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Paxtang.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Paxtang’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.