Coplay Cement Company Kilns · Photo: Nicholas A. Tonelli · CC BY 2.0On FEMA’s figures, Coplay faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Coplay gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns, #694 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). 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 Coplay 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
Hurricanes
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 Coplay’s grade
River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Coplay, and Coplay’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 65% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 7% (higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts).
B #694 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Coplay’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Pennsylvania town has lower expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Coplay has more expected damage per building than 67% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $927K a year in losses across Coplay: $513K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Coplay flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Coplay. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Coplay isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Lehigh County.2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Coplay
Disasters that paid out in Coplay itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Coplay), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Hurricane Irene7 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
- 2004Tropical Depression Ivan3 households applied for aid$3K aid approved
Lehigh County has had 13 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 Coplay after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Coplay archive →Coplay and its neighbors
Coplay has the lowest expected damage per building of the 3 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coplay | Bless damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Whitehall Township | B−less damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 45 |
| Northampton | C+more damage than 58% | river and rain flooding | 18 |
| Hokendauqua | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Stiles | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
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 Coplay 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.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- 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 Coplay
Is Coplay at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Coplay has lower expected damage per building than 56% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #694 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%) and hurricanes (7%). 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.
Is Coplay 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 Lehigh County, 23% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Coplay?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Coplay’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 Coplay?
By FEMA money that reached Coplay, Tropical Depression Ivan (2004): 3 households applied for aid, $3K approved.
Is Coplay at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Coplay’s rate for it is higher than 65% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Coplay.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Coplay’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.