Photo: Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0Less hazard damage per building is expected in Huston Township than in 95% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Huston Township gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%). Flood insurance has paid 14 claims here since 1996.
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 Huston 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
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 Huston Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 85% of the building damage FEMA expects in Huston Township, and Huston Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 75% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 7% (higher than 66% of U.S. census tracts).
A lower expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Huston Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $307K a year in losses across Huston Township: $258K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Huston Township flood? Sometimes: 14 flood claims since 1996
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Huston Township, from FEMA’s records: 27.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 87% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Ivan2 claims · $35K
Huston 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: Blair County.The storms Huston Township remembers
None of the 15 disasters declared for Blair County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Huston Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 20137 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 20143 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 20042 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Depression Ivan, declared for Blair County
Blair County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Huston Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Huston Township archive →Huston Township and its neighbors
Huston Township is 2nd 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Woodbury Township | Aless damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Huston Township | Aless damage than 95% | river and rain flooding | 14 |
| Taylor Township | B+less damage than 65% | river and rain flooding | 10 |
| Frankstown Township | Bless damage than 63% | river and rain flooding | 170 |
| Woodbury Township | Cmore damage than 72% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| Lincoln Township | — | 219 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Hopewell Township | — | 495 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 Huston 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.
- 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 Huston Township
Is Huston Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Huston Township has lower expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (85%) 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.
Does Huston Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 14 claims in Huston Township since 1996, $172K in all, or 27.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 87% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Ivan (2).
Is Huston 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 Blair County, 19% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Huston Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Huston 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 Huston Township?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Ivan: 2 paid, $35K.
Is Huston Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (85%), and Huston Township’s rate for it is lower than 75% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Huston Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Huston 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.