Photo: Max Chistokletov · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA puts Swissvale’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 87% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Swissvale gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns, #290 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). 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 Swissvale 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 Swissvale’s grade
River and rain flooding is 95% of the building damage FEMA expects in Swissvale, and Swissvale’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.
A #290 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; lower expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Swissvale’s residents live in 4 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, Swissvale has less expected damage per building than 72% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.4M a year in losses across Swissvale: $1.0M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Swissvale flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Swissvale. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Swissvale isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Allegheny County.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Swissvale
Disasters that paid out in Swissvale itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Swissvale), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2004Tropical Depression Ivan1 households applied for aid$2K aid approved
Allegheny County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Swissvale after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Swissvale archive →Swissvale and its neighbors
Swissvale is 4th of the 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Edgewood | A+less damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Munhall | Aless damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Braddock Hills | Aless damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Swissvale | Aless damage than 87% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Rankin | A−less damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| North Braddock | Bless damage than 62% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Pittsburgh | Cmore damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | 447 |
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 Swissvale 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 Swissvale
Is Swissvale at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Swissvale has lower expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #290 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Swissvale 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 Allegheny County, 28% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Swissvale?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Swissvale’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 Swissvale?
By FEMA money that reached Swissvale, Tropical Depression Ivan (2004): 1 households applied for aid, $2K approved.
Is Swissvale at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (95%), and Swissvale’s rate for it is lower than 56% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Swissvale.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Swissvale’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.