Photo: Gerry Dincher · CC BY-SA 2.0On FEMA’s figures, Limestone Township faces more hazard damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Limestone Township gets a C for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). Flood insurance has paid 103 claims here since 1979.
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 stands out about Limestone Township’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Limestone 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
Strong wind
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 Limestone Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Limestone Township, and Limestone Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts. Strong wind adds 7%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
C higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Limestone Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $557K a year in losses across Limestone Township: $465K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Limestone Township flood? Yes: 103 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Limestone Township, from FEMA’s records: 139.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 97% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Ivan23 claims · $772K
Limestone 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: Union County.The storms Limestone Township remembers
None of the 14 disasters declared for Union County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Limestone Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 199642 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Union County
- 200423 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Depression Ivan, declared for Union County
- 198415 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Union County has had 14 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often floods, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Limestone Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Limestone Township archive →Limestone Township and its neighbors
Limestone Township is 5th 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Center Township | B−less damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Jackson Township | C+more damage than 55% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Buffalo Township | C+more damage than 58% | river and rain flooding | 37 |
| Union Township | Cmore damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Limestone Township | Cmore damage than 69% | river and rain flooding | 103 |
| Lewis Township | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | — |
| West Buffalo Township | C−more damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Mifflinburg | C−more damage than 83% | river and rain flooding | 46 |
| New Berlin | — | 781 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Penns Creek | — | 823 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 Limestone 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.
- Trim dead limbs over the house and driveway.
- Tie down trash cans and outdoor furniture.
- Stay clear of downed lines and call the utility.
- 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 Limestone Township
Is Limestone Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Limestone Township has higher expected damage per building than 69% of U.S. towns: C for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%) and strong wind (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 Limestone Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 103 claims in Limestone Township since 1979, $1.9M in all, or 139.6 per 1,000 homes, more than 97% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 11 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Ivan (23).
Is Limestone 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 Union County, 17% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Limestone Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Limestone 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 Limestone Township?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Ivan: 23 paid, $772K.
Is Limestone Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Limestone Township’s rate for it is higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Limestone Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Limestone 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.