Photo: Vasiliy Meshko · CC BY 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Duryea faces more hazard damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Duryea gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns, #1,017 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (96%). Flood insurance has paid 31 claims here since 1978.
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 Duryea 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
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 Duryea’s grade
River and rain flooding is 96% of the building damage FEMA expects in Duryea, and Duryea’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
D #1,017 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; higher expected damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Duryea’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, Duryea has more expected damage per building than 98% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.3M a year in losses across Duryea: $2.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Duryea flood? Sometimes: 31 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Duryea, from FEMA’s records: 13.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 79% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Lee20 claims · $1.4M
- Tropical Storm Ivan5 claims · $13K
Duryea 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.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Duryea
Disasters that paid out in Duryea itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Borough of Duryea), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2011Tropical Storm Lee246 households applied for aid$2.1M aid approved20 flood claims paid for it, $1.4M
- 2006Severe Storms, Flooding, and Mudslides6 households applied for aid$4K aid approved
- 2004Tropical Depression Ivan12 households applied for aid$8K aid approved5 flood claims paid for it, $13K
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.
Old photos of Duryea after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Duryea archive →Duryea and its neighbors
Duryea is 8th of the 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ransom Township | B−more damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Old Forge | B−more damage than 53% | river and rain flooding | 21 |
| Avoca | C−more damage than 77% | river and rain flooding | 23 |
| Hughestown | C−more damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Exeter | C−more damage than 81% | river and rain flooding | 63 |
| Pittston | C−more damage than 84% | river and rain flooding | 57 |
| Exeter Township | C−more damage than 84% | river and rain flooding | 23 |
| Duryea | Dmore damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 31 |
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 Duryea 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.
- 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 Duryea
Is Duryea at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Duryea has higher expected damage per building than 88% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk, #1,017 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (96%). 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 Duryea flood?
Flood insurance has paid 31 claims in Duryea since 1978, $1.4M in all, or 13.3 per 1,000 homes, more than 79% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (20).
Is Duryea 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 Duryea?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Duryea’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 Duryea?
By FEMA money that reached Duryea, Tropical Storm Lee (2011): 246 households applied for aid, $2.1M approved. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 20 paid, $1.4M.
Is Duryea at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (96%), and Duryea’s rate for it is in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Duryea.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Duryea’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.