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NSP Weather-BeatenPhoto: Nicholas · CC BY 2.0
–Not graded
Natural hazards in Dennison Township · FEMA

Storms, floods and disasters in Dennison Township

Dennison Township isn’t graded for hazard risk: FEMA’s tract figures aren’t matched to Dennison Township yet. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1983.

Flood claims
4
paid since 1983 · $11K
Disasters paid out here
0
of 18 declared for Luzerne County
By hazard

What Dennison 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

88%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 65% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

5%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 69% of U.S. census tracts
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Strong wind Ice storms Wildfire Winter storms Hail Lightning Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 10% of Dennison Township’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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.
Flood insurance claims

Does Dennison Township flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1983

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Dennison Township, from FEMA’s records.

Paid flood claims, by year
1983: 1 claim1984: 0 claims1985: 0 claims1986: 0 claims1987: 0 claims1988: 0 claims1989: 0 claims1990: 0 claims1991: 0 claims1992: 0 claims1993: 0 claims1994: 0 claims1995: 0 claims1996: 1 claim1997: 0 claims1998: 0 claims1999: 0 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 1 claim2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims198319962006
19832026
4
paid claims since 1983
$11K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$3K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Dennison 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: Luzerne County.
Disasters

The storms Dennison Township remembers

None of the 18 disasters declared for Luzerne County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Dennison Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 19831 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  2. 19961 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Luzerne County
  3. 20061 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Luzerne County
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Dennison TownshipLuzerne County only

Luzerne County has had 18 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

Old photos of Dennison Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Dennison Township archive →
Next door

Dennison Township and its neighbors

How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Foster TownshipAless damage than 94%river and rain flooding24
Kidder TownshipAless damage than 92%river and rain flooding5
Wright TownshipAless damage than 92%river and rain flooding23
Bear Creek TownshipA−less damage than 82%river and rain flooding4
Fairview TownshipA−less damage than 81%river and rain flooding—
Butler TownshipB+less damage than 72%river and rain flooding4
White HavenBless damage than 58%river and rain flooding3
Penn Lake Park—376 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 Dennison 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 ↗
Hurricane season
  • 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.
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 Dennison Township

Does Dennison Township flood?

Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Dennison Township since 1983, $11K in all.

Is Dennison 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 Luzerne County, 53% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 3.3% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Dennison Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Dennison 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 Dennison Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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