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A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Rising Sun · FEMA

Less hazard damage per building is expected in Rising Sun than in 83% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rising Sun gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns, #236 of 261 in Maryland. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (79%). Flood insurance has paid 2 claims here since 1999.

River and rain flooding 79%Hurricanes 7%Earthquakes 4%

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

less than 83%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#236 of 261 in Maryland
Hazard risk
A−#236 of 261
in Maryland · lower than 83% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
79% of expected building damage
Flood claims
2
paid since 1999 · $28K
Disasters paid out here
8
of 16 declared for Cecil County

What stands out about Rising Sun’s natural hazards

From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.

Lower expected damage than 83% of U.S. townsFEMA’s model of yearly storm and flood damage per dollar of building.Moved out of harm’s way1 flood-prone property bought out and cleared with FEMA grants.
By hazard

What Rising Sun 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

79%of expected building damage
Below average · lower than 64% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

7%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 13 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Tornadoes Strong wind Ice storms Winter storms Lightning Hail Wildfire Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts drought at 9% of Rising Sun’s expected losses. Drought does little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

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.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Rising Sun’s grade

River and rain flooding is 79% of the building damage FEMA expects in Rising Sun, and Rising Sun’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 64% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 7% (higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Rising Sun sits
Rising Sun
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− #236 of 261 in Maryland; lower expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Rising Sun’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding79%Hurricanes7%Earthquakes4%Everything else9%

The typical Maryland town has lower expected damage than 97% of U.S. towns; within the state, Rising Sun has more expected damage per building than 90% of Maryland towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $595K a year in losses across Rising Sun: $359K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Rising Sun’s 2,740 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract. FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s. The flood claims below are the town’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Rising Sun flood? Rarely: 2 flood claims since 1999

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Rising Sun, from FEMA’s records: 1.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 67% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
1999: 2 claims2000: 0 claims2001: 0 claims2002: 0 claims2003: 0 claims2004: 0 claims2005: 0 claims2006: 0 claims2007: 0 claims2008: 0 claims2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 0 claims2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 0 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 0 claims2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims1999
19992026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Floyd2 claims · $28K
2
paid claims since 1999
$28K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$14K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Rising Sun isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Cecil County.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
1flood-prone property bought out and cleared
Disasters

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Rising Sun

Disasters that paid out in Rising Sun itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Rising Sun), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2016Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$17K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs
  2. 2012Hurricane Sandy$5K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs
  3. 2010Severe Winter Storms and Snowstorms$9K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs
  4. 2009Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm$5K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs
  5. 2008Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding$8K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs
  6. 2003Hurricane Isabel11 households applied for aid$575 aid approved
Show all 8
  1. 2003Snow$3K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs
  2. 2001Flooding, Severe Storms and Tornadoes$1K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Rising SunCecil County only

Cecil County has had 16 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.

Were you here?

Old photos of Rising Sun after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Rising Sun archive →
Be ready

Get ready for what Rising Sun faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Hurricane season
  • 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.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • 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.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Rising Sun

Is Rising Sun at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Rising Sun has lower expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk, #236 of 261 in Maryland. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (79%) and hurricanes (7%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Rising Sun flood?

Flood insurance has paid 2 claims in Rising Sun since 1999, $28K in all, or 1.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 67% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Floyd (2).

Is Rising Sun 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 Cecil County, 41% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Rising Sun?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Rising Sun’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 Rising Sun?

By FEMA money that reached Rising Sun, Severe Winter Storm and Snowstorm (2016): $17K to the Town of Rising Sun for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Floyd: 2 paid, $28K.

Is Rising Sun at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (79%), and Rising Sun’s rate for it is lower than 64% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Rising Sun.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Rising Sun’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.