Photo: SlipperyDude · CC BY-SA 3.0FEMA puts Chesapeake Ranch Estates’s expected hazard damage per building below that of 92% of U.S. towns, led by river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chesapeake Ranch Estates gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns, #206 of 261 in Maryland. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (50%), then hurricanes (39%). Flood insurance has paid 1 claim here since 1985.
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 Chesapeake Ranch Estates 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 Chesapeake Ranch Estates’ grade
River and rain flooding is 50% of the building damage FEMA expects in Chesapeake Ranch Estates, and Chesapeake Ranch Estates’ rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 94% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 3%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
A #206 of 261 in Maryland; lower expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Chesapeake Ranch Estates’ residents live in 2 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, Chesapeake Ranch Estates has more expected damage per building than 79% of Maryland towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Chesapeake Ranch Estates: $823K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Chesapeake Ranch Estates flood? Rarely: 1 flood claim since 1985
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Chesapeake Ranch Estates, from FEMA’s records: 0.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 95% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Chesapeake Ranch Estates isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Calvert County.The storms Chesapeake Ranch Estates remembers
None of the 19 disasters declared for Calvert County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Chesapeake Ranch Estates itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 19851 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Calvert County has had 19 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 Chesapeake Ranch Estates after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Chesapeake Ranch Estates archive →Chesapeake Ranch Estates and its neighbors
Chesapeake Ranch Estates 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chesapeake Ranch Estates | Aless damage than 92% | river and rain flooding | 1 |
| Drum Point | Aless damage than 91% | river and rain flooding | 7 |
| Lusby | Aless damage than 90% | hurricanes | — |
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 Chesapeake Ranch Estates 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 Chesapeake Ranch Estates
Is Chesapeake Ranch Estates at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Chesapeake Ranch Estates has lower expected damage per building than 92% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #206 of 261 in Maryland. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (50%) and hurricanes (39%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Chesapeake Ranch Estates flood?
Flood insurance has paid 1 claim in Chesapeake Ranch Estates since 1985, $586 in all, or 0.3 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 95% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Chesapeake Ranch Estates 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 Calvert County, 63% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 2.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Chesapeake Ranch Estates?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Chesapeake Ranch Estates’ flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Chesapeake Ranch Estates at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (50%), and Chesapeake Ranch Estates’ rate for it is lower than 94% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Chesapeake Ranch Estates.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Chesapeake Ranch Estates’ 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.