Natural hazards · Unity

Unity, PA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Unity comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 89 claims here since 1978.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Unity?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Unity to be higher than in 4% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding81%Everything else19%

By hazard

What Unity faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Inland flooding

81% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 18% of U.S. places

Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Lower here

HurricanesTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningAvalanches

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtTsunamisVolcanic activity

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.

Flood insurance claims

Does Unity flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Unity, from FEMA’s records.

89paid claims since 1978

$1.2Mpaid to owners

15homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Tropical Storm Ivan: 7 claims, $326K
Hurricane Sandy: 5 claims, $206K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Unity isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Westmoreland County.

Disasters that hit Unity

Federal disasters declared here

None of the disasters declared for Westmoreland County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Unity itself in FEMA’s records.

Brought FEMA money into UnityDeclared for Westmoreland County only

Westmoreland County has had 18 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often floods and winter storms.

Around Unity

Unity and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Ligoniermostly inland floodingModerate

Latrobemostly inland floodingLow

Cookmostly inland floodingVery low

Mount Pleasantmostly inland floodingVery low

Salemmostly inland floodingVery low

Derrymostly inland floodingVery low

Unitymostly inland floodingVery low

Hempfieldmostly inland floodingVery low

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Unity covers 6 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Unity’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Township of Unity. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

FEMA’s expected losses across Unity total about $3.6M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); 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. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.