D. H. Springhouse · Photo: Jerrye & Roy Klotz, MD · CC BY-SA 3.0On FEMA’s figures, Bel Air North faces less hazard damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bel Air North gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns, #222 of 261 in Maryland. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (80%), then hurricanes (11%). Flood insurance has paid 6 claims here since 1984.
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 Bel Air North 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
Hurricanes
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 Bel Air North’s grade
River and rain flooding is 80% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bel Air North, and Bel Air North’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 71% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 11% (higher than 73% of U.S. census tracts).
A #222 of 261 in Maryland; lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Bel Air North’s residents live in 11 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Maryland town has lower expected damage than 97% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bel Air North has more expected damage per building than 85% of Maryland towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.9M a year in losses across Bel Air North: $4.1M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Bel Air North flood? Rarely: 6 flood claims since 1984
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bel Air North, from FEMA’s records: 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 89% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Bel Air North isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Harford County.The storms Bel Air North remembers
None of the 15 disasters declared for Harford County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Bel Air North itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19842 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19871 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
- 19891 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Harford County has had 15 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often winter storms, then hurricanes and tropical storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Old photos of Bel Air North after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bel Air North archive →Bel Air North and its neighbors
Bel Air North is 3rd of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bel Air | Aless damage than 94% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Fallston | Aless damage than 93% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
| Bel Air North | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 6 |
| Bel Air South | Aless damage than 88% | river and rain flooding | 2 |
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 Bel Air North 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.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- 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 Bel Air North
Is Bel Air North at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bel Air North has lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #222 of 261 in Maryland. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (80%) and hurricanes (11%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Bel Air North flood?
Flood insurance has paid 6 claims in Bel Air North since 1984, $26K in all, or 0.5 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 89% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Bel Air North 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 Harford County, 46% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Bel Air North?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bel Air North’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Bel Air North at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (80%), and Bel Air North’s rate for it is lower than 71% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bel Air North.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bel Air North’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.