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CHazard risk
Natural hazards in West St. Clair Township · FEMA

FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in West St. Clair Township than in 65% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, West St. Clair Township gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). Flood insurance has paid 47 claims here since 1983.

River and rain flooding 93%Hurricanes 4%Tornadoes 1%

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

more than 65%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
C
in Pennsylvania · higher than 65% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
93% of expected building damage
Flood claims
47
paid since 1983 · $601K
Flooded more than once
3
properties · 1 “severe repetitive loss”
Flood claims per home
70 per 1,000
more than 94% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What West St. Clair 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

93%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area
Smaller shares here
 Hurricanes Tornadoes Hail Earthquakes Strong wind Wildfire Landslides top 4% Winter storms Ice storms Cold waves Heat waves 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 West St. Clair Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 93% of the building damage FEMA expects in West St. Clair Township, and West St. Clair Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts.

Where West St. Clair Township sits
West St. Clair Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

C higher expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of West St. Clair Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding93%Hurricanes4%Everything else3%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $748K a year in losses across West St. Clair Township: $650K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of West St. Clair Township’s 1,658 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with East St. Clair township (2,908 residents) and Pleasantville borough (191 residents) and St. Clairsville borough (76 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 township’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 West St. Clair Township flood? Sometimes: 47 flood claims since 1983

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in West St. Clair Township, from FEMA’s records: 70.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 94% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1983: 13 claims1984: 1 claim1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 2 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 3 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 2 claims1994: 1 claim1995: 0 claims1996: 8 claims1997: 2 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 3 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 2 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 4 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 2 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 4 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198319962012
19832026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Ida4 claims · $117K
  • Hurricane Sandy4 claims · $53K
  • The March 2010 nor’easter1 claim · $73
47
paid claims since 1983
$601K
paid to owners
3
homes flooded more than once
$13K
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

West St. Clair 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: Bedford County.
Disasters

The storms West St. Clair Township remembers

None of the 16 disasters declared for Bedford County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching West St. Clair Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 198313 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 19968 flood claims paidThe year of Flooding, Severe Storms, declared for Bedford County
  3. 20124 flood claims paidThe year of Hurricane Sandy, declared for Bedford County
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in West St. Clair TownshipBedford County only

Bedford 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 West St. Clair Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the West St. Clair Township archive →
Next door

West St. Clair Township and its neighbors

West St. Clair Township is 3rd of the 3 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

East St. Clair Township: hazard risk CLincoln Township: not gradedOgle Township: not gradedNapier Township: hazard risk C+East St. Clair TownshipLincoln TownshipOgle TownshipNapier TownshipWest St. Clair Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Napier TownshipC+more damage than 60%river and rain flooding3
East St. Clair TownshipCmore damage than 65%river and rain flooding175
West St. Clair TownshipCmore damage than 65%river and rain flooding47
Lincoln Township—317 residents; we grade 1,000+
Ogle Township—454 residents; we grade 1,000+

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what West St. Clair 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.

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 ↗
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 West St. Clair Township

Is West St. Clair Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, West St. Clair Township has higher expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (93%). 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 West St. Clair Township flood?

Flood insurance has paid 47 claims in West St. Clair Township since 1983, $601K in all, or 70.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 94% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 3 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Ida (4).

Is West St. Clair 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 Bedford County, 12% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.9% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in West St. Clair Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for West St. Clair Township’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 West St. Clair Township?

By flood claims, Hurricane Ida: 4 paid, $117K.

Is West St. Clair Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (93%), and West St. Clair Township’s rate for it is higher than 82% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in West St. Clair Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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