Riverdale Park’s biggest natural hazard is inland flooding
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Riverdale Park comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 9 claims here since 1985. 3 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
What stands out about Riverdale Park’s weather risks
Read from FEMA’s records below. The page puts what stands out first.
How exposed is Riverdale Park?
FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings here to be higher than in 46% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding.
Rated higher than 497 of the 536 Maryland towns we cover.
Riverdale Park covers 1 census tract, combined by population.
What Riverdale Park faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
Inland flooding
Heat waves
Tornadoes
Does Riverdale Park flood? Rarely: 9 flood claims since 1985
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Riverdale Park, from FEMA’s records.
Riverdale Park isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Prince George's County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Riverdale Park
Disasters that paid out in Riverdale Park itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Riverdale Park) and its biggest flood years.
- 2016Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$24K to the Town of Riverdale Park for repairs
- 2011Hurricane Irene$11K to the Town of Riverdale Park for repairs
- 2010Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorms$16K to the Town of Riverdale Park for repairs
Prince George's County has had 16 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often winter storms and hurricanes.
Old photos of Riverdale Park after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Riverdale Park archive →Get ready for what Riverdale Park actually faces
A short kit for its top hazards, 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.
- Know the nearest cooling center or air-conditioned library.
- Drink water before you feel thirsty.
- Check on neighbors who live alone.
- 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.
Riverdale Park and its neighbors
Riverdale Park has the highest rating of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Rating | Mostly | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverdale Park | Moderate | inland flooding | 9 |
| Edmonston | Low | inland flooding | 0 |
| Hyattsville | Low | inland flooding | 15 |
| East Riverdale | Very low | inland flooding | 0 |
| University Park | Very low | inland flooding | 3 |
| Greenbelt | Very low | inland flooding | 3 |
| College Park | Very low | inland flooding | 41 |
Rating = expected yearly storm and flood damage as a share of what’s there, vs. U.S. communities. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Most disasters here begin in January–February
The month each of Prince George's County’s 16 declared disasters began, since 1953.
What these numbers can and can’t tell you
- An average, not a forecast. FEMA’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 there, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings.
- Money that reached town. Flood claims are matched to Riverdale Park’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Riverdale Park.
- It follows property value. FEMA’s model weighs damage to buildings, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels. Across Riverdale Park, expected losses total about $846K a year, counting buildings, people and crops.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Riverdale Park.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. An average of past damage, not a forecast.