Photo: Ethan James Scherrer · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Emporia Township
Emporia Township isn’t graded for hazard risk: Emporia Township has 961 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 1996.
What Emporia 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
Wildfire
Tornadoes
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.
Does Emporia Township flood? Rarely: 5 flood claims since 1996
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Emporia Township, from FEMA’s records.
Emporia 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: Lyon County.The storms Emporia Township remembers
None of the 23 disasters declared for Lyon County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Emporia Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19962 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19982 flood claims paidThe year of Ks-flooding 10/31/98, declared for Lyon County
- 20041 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes, declared for Lyon County
Lyon County has had 23 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 Emporia Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Emporia Township archive →Emporia Township and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emporia | Bless damage than 58% | river and rain flooding | 18 |
| Center Township | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Americus Township | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 8 |
| Fremont Township | — | 885 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Pike Township | — | 782 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Jackson Township | — | 836 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Elmendaro Township | — | 727 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 Emporia 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.
- Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
- Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
- Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
- 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.
- 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 Emporia Township
Does Emporia Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 5 claims in Emporia Township since 1996, $41K in all.
Is Emporia 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 Lyon County, 5% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Emporia Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Emporia Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Emporia Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Emporia 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.