Photo: Nyttend · Public domainFEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Palmer Township than in 70% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Palmer Township gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%). Flood insurance has paid 3 claims here since 2007.
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 Palmer 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
Hail
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 Palmer Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 78% of the building damage FEMA expects in Palmer Township, and Palmer Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 2%, at a rate in the top 9% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Palmer Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $437K a year in losses across Palmer Township: $338K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Palmer Township flood? Rarely: 3 flood claims since 2007
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Palmer Township, from FEMA’s records: 6.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 66% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Erin1 claim · $10K
Palmer 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: Putnam County.The storms Palmer Township remembers
None of the 9 disasters declared for Putnam County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Palmer Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20073 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes, declared for Putnam County
Putnam County has had 9 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.
Old photos of Palmer Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Palmer Township archive →Palmer Township and its neighbors
Palmer Township is 4th of the 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty Township | Bless damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
| Greensburg Township | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Monroe Township | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Palmer Township | Cmore damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Pleasant Township | C−more damage than 82% | river and rain flooding | — |
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 Palmer 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.
- Park in a garage or under cover when storms are forecast.
- Stay away from windows while it falls.
- Photograph roof and car damage for your insurer.
- 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 Palmer Township
Is Palmer Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Palmer Township has higher expected damage per building than 70% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (78%) and tornadoes (9%). 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 Palmer Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 3 claims in Palmer Township since 2007, $144K in all, or 6.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 66% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Erin (1).
Is Palmer 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 Putnam County, 20% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.8% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Palmer Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Palmer 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 Palmer Township?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Erin: 1 paid, $10K.
Is Palmer Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (78%), and Palmer Township’s rate for it is higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Palmer Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Palmer 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.