Photo: Yaoiloverr · CC BY-SA 4.0On FEMA’s figures, Bel Air faces less hazard damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bel Air gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns, #178 of 261 in Maryland. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%), then hurricanes (13%). Flood insurance has paid 6 claims here since 1978.
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 stands out about Bel Air’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Bel Air 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
Earthquakes
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’s grade
River and rain flooding is 73% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bel Air, and Bel Air’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 82% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 13% (higher than 78% of U.S. census tracts).
A #178 of 261 in Maryland; lower expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Bel Air’s residents live in 6 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 has more expected damage per building than 68% of Maryland towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.0M a year in losses across Bel Air: $1.4M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Bel Air flood? Rarely: 6 flood claims since 1978
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bel Air, from FEMA’s records: 1.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 75% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Isabel1 claim · $5K
Bel Air is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 6) for its flood-proofing work.
Insurance rates: Harford County.8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bel Air
Disasters that paid out in Bel Air itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Bel Air), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2016Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$85K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Sandy$45K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs
- 2011Hurricane Irene$25K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs
- 2010Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorms$81K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs
- 2009Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$28K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs
- 2003Hurricane Isabel25 households applied for aid$18K aid approved$38K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $5K
Show all 8
- 2003Snow$14K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs
- 1999Hurricane Floyd Major Disaster Declarations$13K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs
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 after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bel Air archive →Bel Air and its neighbors
Bel Air has the lowest expected damage per building of the 3 graded towns here. 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 |
| 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 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.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- 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.
- Bel Air residents get 20% off flood insurance.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Bel Air
Is Bel Air at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bel Air has lower expected damage per building than 94% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #178 of 261 in Maryland. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (73%) and hurricanes (13%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Bel Air flood?
Flood insurance has paid 6 claims in Bel Air since 1978, $15K in all, or 1.1 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 75% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Isabel (1).
Is Bel Air 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?
Bel Air is in FEMA’s Community Rating System (class 6), which takes 20% off federal flood insurance policies for its flood-proofing work. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Bel Air?
By FEMA money that reached Bel Air, Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm (2016): $85K to the Town of Bel Air for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Isabel: 1 paid, $5K.
Is Bel Air at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (73%), and Bel Air’s rate for it is lower than 82% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bel Air.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bel Air’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.