Photo: formulanone · CC BY-SA 2.0On FEMA’s figures, few U.S. towns expect less hazard damage per building than Galesville, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Galesville gets an A+ for hazard risk: among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%), then hurricanes (16%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Galesville 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
Coastal flooding
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 Galesville’s grade
River and rain flooding is 59% of the building damage FEMA expects in Galesville, and Galesville’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 97% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 11%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
A+ among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns (21,298).
Galesville’s residents live in 2 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $133K a year in losses across Galesville: $84K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Galesville flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Galesville. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Galesville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Anne Arundel County.The storms Galesville remembers
None of the 19 disasters declared for Anne Arundel County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Galesville itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
Anne Arundel 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.
Galesville and its neighbors
Galesville has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Galesville | A+among the lowest damage | river and rain flooding | 0 |
| Shady Side | Aless damage than 90% | river and rain flooding | 409 |
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 Galesville 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.
- Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
- Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
- Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
- 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.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Galesville
Is Galesville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Galesville has among the lowest expected damage per building of U.S. towns: A+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (59%) and hurricanes (16%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Galesville 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 Anne Arundel County, 2.5% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Galesville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Galesville’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Galesville at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (59%), and Galesville’s rate for it is lower than 97% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Galesville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Galesville’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.