Photo: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0On FEMA’s figures, Plymouth Township faces more hazard damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Plymouth Township gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). Flood insurance has paid 353 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 Plymouth Township’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Plymouth 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
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 Plymouth Township’s grade
River and rain flooding is 95% of the building damage FEMA expects in Plymouth Township, and Plymouth Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
D higher expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Plymouth Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $826K a year in losses across Plymouth Township: $690K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Plymouth Township flood? Yes: 353 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Plymouth Township, from FEMA’s records: 451.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 99% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Tropical Storm Lee60 claims · $3.9M
- Tropical Storm Ivan46 claims · $935K
- The Torrential rain5 claims · $5K
Plymouth 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: Luzerne County.The storms Plymouth Township remembers
None of the 18 disasters declared for Luzerne County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Plymouth Township itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 197966 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 201166 flood claims paidThe year of Tropical Storm Lee, declared for Luzerne County
- 199651 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Luzerne County
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 Plymouth Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Plymouth Township archive →Plymouth Township and its neighbors
Plymouth Township is 7th of the 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lehman Township | A+less damage than 98% | river and rain flooding | 13 |
| Jackson Township | Aless damage than 87% | river and rain flooding | — |
| Nanticoke | B+less damage than 75% | river and rain flooding | 55 |
| Hanover Township | Bless damage than 58% | river and rain flooding | 90 |
| Larksville | B−more damage than 51% | river and rain flooding | 3 |
| Plymouth | C−more damage than 80% | river and rain flooding | 76 |
| Plymouth Township | Dmore damage than 87% | river and rain flooding | 353 |
| West Nanticoke | — | 632 residents; we grade 1,000+ | |
| Silkworth | — | 745 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 Plymouth 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.
- 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 Plymouth Township
Is Plymouth Township at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Plymouth Township has higher expected damage per building than 87% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (95%). 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 Plymouth Township flood?
Flood insurance has paid 353 claims in Plymouth Township since 1979, $6.8M in all, or 451.4 per 1,000 homes, more than 99% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Lee (60).
Is Plymouth 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 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 Plymouth Township?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Plymouth 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 Plymouth Township?
By flood claims, Tropical Storm Lee: 60 paid, $3.9M.
Is Plymouth Township at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (95%), and Plymouth Township’s rate for it is in the top 6% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Plymouth Township.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Plymouth 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.