Natural hazards · Towson

Towson, MD natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Towson comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is very low for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 65 claims here since 1978. 1 federal disaster brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Towson?

Very low

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Towson to be higher than in 6% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and heat waves.

Inland flooding41%Heat waves26%Earthquakes11%Hurricanes9%Everything else13%

By hazard

What Towson faces

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

Inland flooding

41% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 9% of U.S. places

Recorded about 6 times a year in the area

Heat waves

26% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 13% of U.S. places

Recorded about 7 times a year in the area

Earthquakes

11% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 66% of U.S. places

Hurricanes

9% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 78% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 10 years in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesWildfireLandslidesStrong 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 Towson flood?

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

65paid claims since 1978

$1.4Mpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

19782026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Irene: 1 claim, $2K
Mid-spring storms: 1 claim, $96K
Hurricane Gloria: 1 claim, $5K

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Baltimore County.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

1flood-prone properties bought out and cleared

Disasters that hit Towson

1 federal disaster brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Towson itself: aid to households, or repair grants to Towson.

Brought FEMA money into TowsonDeclared for Baltimore County only

2003

Hurricane Isabel

11 households applied for aid $10K aid approved

Baltimore County has had 20 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often winter storms and floods.

Around Towson

Towson and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Baltimoremostly inland floodingVery low

Parkvillemostly inland floodingVery low

Mays Chapelmostly inland floodingVery low

Towsonmostly inland floodingVery low

Pikesvillemostly inland floodingVery low

Hamptonmostly inland floodingVery low

Luthervillemostly 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. Towson covers 19 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Towson’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Towson. 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 Towson total about $12.6M 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.