Photo: Nyttend · Public domainFEMA puts Lower Yoder Township’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 97% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lower Yoder Township gets an A+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%). Flood insurance has paid 15 claims here since 1980.
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 Lower Yoder 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
Tornadoes
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 Yoder Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 87% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lower Yoder Township, and Lower Yoder Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 5% (lower than 54% of U.S. census tracts).
A+ lower expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Lower Yoder Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $430K a year in losses across Lower Yoder Township: $344K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lower Yoder Township flood? Sometimes: 15 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lower Yoder Township, from FEMA’s records: 10.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 74% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Lower Yoder 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: Cambria County.The storms Lower Yoder Township remembers
None of the 15 disasters declared for Cambria County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Lower Yoder Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 198111 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19801 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19871 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Cambria 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 Lower Yoder Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lower Yoder Township archive →Lower Yoder Township and its neighbors
Lower Yoder Township is 3rd of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Westmont | A+among the lowest damage | river and rain flooding | 15 |
| Upper Yoder Township | A+less damage than 97% | river and rain flooding | 9 |
| Lower Yoder Township | A+less damage than 97% | river and rain flooding | 15 |
| Johnstown | B−less damage than 50% | river and rain flooding | 166 |
| St. Clair Township | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Fairfield Township | C+more damage than 64% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| West Taylor Township | — | 706 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Westwood | — | a Census area inside a town; graded with the town | |
| Brownstown | — | 674 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 Lower Yoder 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- 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 Yoder Township
Is Lower Yoder Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lower Yoder Township has lower expected damage per building than 97% of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (87%) and tornadoes (5%). 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 Lower Yoder Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 15 claims in Lower Yoder Township since 1980, $89K in all, or 10.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 74% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 1 properties have flooded more than once.
Is Lower Yoder 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 Cambria County, 15% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Lower Yoder Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lower Yoder Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Lower Yoder Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (87%), and Lower Yoder Township’s rate for it is lower than 78% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lower Yoder Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lower Yoder 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.