Photo: Nicholas · CC BY 2.0On FEMA’s figures, Lower Macungie Township faces less hazard damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lower Macungie Township gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns, #583 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%). Flood insurance has paid 150 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 stands out about Lower Macungie Township’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Lower Macungie 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 Lower Macungie Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 84% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lower Macungie Township, and Lower Macungie Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 57% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 8% (higher than 74% of U.S. census tracts).
B+ #583 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania; lower expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Lower Macungie Township’s residents live in 7 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Pennsylvania town has lower expected damage than 71% of U.S. towns; within the state, Lower Macungie Township has more expected damage per building than 56% of Pennsylvania towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $12.0M a year in losses across Lower Macungie Township: $7.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lower Macungie Township flood? Yes: 150 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lower Macungie Township, from FEMA’s records: 12.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 77% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Isaias30 claims · $1.4M
- Tropical Storm Ivan21 claims · $797K
- Hurricane Irene16 claims · $192K
Lower Macungie 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: Lehigh County.The storms Lower Macungie Township remembers
None of the 13 disasters declared for Lehigh County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Lower Macungie Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 202030 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 200525 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 200421 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Depression Ivan, declared for Lehigh County
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 Lower Macungie Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lower Macungie Township archive →Lower Macungie Township and its neighbors
Lower Macungie Township is 6th 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Milford Township | Aless damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 10 |
| Upper Macungie Township | Aless damage than 86% | river and rain flooding | 16 |
| Emmaus | A−less damage than 76% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| South Whitehall Township | B+less damage than 70% | river and rain flooding | 55 |
| Salisbury Township | B+less damage than 68% | river and rain flooding | 8 |
| Lower Macungie Township | B+less damage than 66% | river and rain flooding | 150 |
| Macungie | Bless damage than 59% | river and rain flooding | 32 |
| Hereford Township | Bless damage than 56% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Wescosville | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Trexlertown | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Breinigsville | — | 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 Lower Macungie 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 Lower Macungie Township
Is Lower Macungie Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lower Macungie Township has lower expected damage per building than 66% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #583 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (84%) and hurricanes (8%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Lower Macungie Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 150 claims in Lower Macungie Township since 1978, $3.2M in all, or 12.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 77% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 25 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Isaias (30).
Is Lower Macungie 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 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 Lower Macungie Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lower Macungie 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 Lower Macungie Township?
By flood claims, Hurricane Isaias: 30 paid, $1.4M.
Is Lower Macungie Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (84%), and Lower Macungie Township’s rate for it is higher than 57% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lower Macungie Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lower Macungie 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.