On FEMA’s figures, Laughery Township faces less hazard damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Laughery Township gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns, #249 of 593 in Indiana. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (66%), then tornadoes (22%). 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 Laughery 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
Tornadoes
Earthquakes
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 Laughery Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 66% of the building damage FEMA expects in Laughery Township, and Laughery Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 60% of U.S. census tracts. Tornadoes add 22%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #249 of 593 in Indiana; lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Laughery Township’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Indiana town has lower expected damage than 60% of U.S. towns; within the state, Laughery Township has less expected damage per building than 58% of Indiana towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.9M a year in losses across Laughery Township: $1.2M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Laughery Township flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Laughery Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Laughery 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: Ripley County.The storms Laughery Township remembers
None of the 14 disasters declared for Ripley County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Laughery Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Ripley County has had 14 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Laughery Township and its neighbors
Laughery Township is 2nd of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams Township | B+less damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Laughery Township | B+less damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Batesville | Bless damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Saltcreek Township | C+more damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Delaware Township | C+more damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 10 |
| Ray Township | Cmore damage than 66% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Jackson Township | — | 649 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.
Get ready for what Laughery 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.
- 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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 Laughery Township
Is Laughery Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Laughery Township has lower expected damage per building than 65% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #249 of 593 in Indiana. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (66%) and tornadoes (22%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Laughery 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 Ripley County, 7% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Laughery Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Laughery Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Laughery Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (66%), and Laughery Township’s rate for it is lower than 60% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Laughery Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Laughery 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.