Natural hazards · Colesville

Colesville, MD natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Colesville comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 5 claims here since 1985.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Colesville?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Colesville to be higher than in 7% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.

Inland flooding58%Heat waves9%Hurricanes8%Earthquakes8%Cold waves5%Everything else12%

By hazard

What Colesville faces

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

Inland flooding

58% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 16% of U.S. places

Recorded about 5 times a year in the area

Heat waves

9% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 3% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

8% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 70% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 11 years in the area

Earthquakes

8% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 53% of U.S. places

Cold waves

5% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 89% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherWildfireLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingDroughtAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Colesville flood?

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

5paid claims since 1985

$19Kpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19852026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Gloria: 1 claim, $2K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Montgomery County.

Disasters that hit Colesville

Federal disasters declared here

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

Brought FEMA money into ColesvilleDeclared for Montgomery County only

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

Around Colesville

Colesville and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Layhillmostly inland floodingLow

Kemp Millmostly inland floodingVery low

Colesvillemostly inland floodingVery low

Glenmontmostly inland floodingVery low

Cloverlymostly inland floodingVery low

White Oakmostly inland floodingVery low

Wheatonmostly inland floodingVery low

Fairlandmostly 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. Colesville covers 3 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Colesville’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Colesville. 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 Colesville total about $2.4M 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.