Preston-on-the-Patuxent · Photo: E.H. Pickering · Public domainLess hazard damage per building is expected in Lusby than in 90% of U.S. towns, led by hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lusby gets an A for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns, #216 of 261 in Maryland. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (38%), then river and rain flooding (36%). 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 stands out about Lusby’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Lusby faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
River and rain flooding
Coastal flooding
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 Lusby’s grade
Hurricanes are 38% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lusby, and Lusby’s rate of hurricanes damage is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 16%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
A #216 of 261 in Maryland; lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Lusby’s residents live in 3 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, Lusby has more expected damage per building than 83% of Maryland towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $354K a year in losses across Lusby: $274K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Lusby flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Lusby. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Lusby 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.1 federal disaster brought FEMA money to Lusby
Disasters that paid out in Lusby itself (aid to households or repair grants to Lusby), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2003Hurricane Isabel157 households applied for aid$187K aid approved
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 Lusby after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Lusby archive →Lusby and its neighbors
Lusby 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | 0 |
| Solomons | Aless damage than 89% | hurricanes | 5 |
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 Lusby faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Lusby
Is Lusby at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lusby has lower expected damage per building than 90% of U.S. towns: A for hazard risk, #216 of 261 in Maryland. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (38%) and river and rain flooding (36%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Is Lusby 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 Lusby?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lusby’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Lusby?
By FEMA money that reached Lusby, Hurricane Isabel (2003): 157 households applied for aid, $187K approved.
Is Lusby at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (38%), and Lusby’s rate for it is higher than 85% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lusby.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Lusby’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.