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View of houses across the lake, Lake Ridge, VirginiaPhoto: Ser Amantio di Nicolao · CC BY-SA 4.0
A−Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Lake Ridge · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Lake Ridge faces less hazard damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lake Ridge gets an A− for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns, #132 of 253 in Virginia. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%). Flood insurance has paid 7 claims here since 2006.

River and rain flooding 82%Hurricanes 8%Tornadoes 3%

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 80%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade#132 of 253 in Virginia
Hazard risk
A−#132 of 253
in Virginia · lower than 80% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
82% of expected building damage
Flood claims
7
paid since 2006 · $36K
Flood claims per home
0 per 1,000
fewer than 91% of U.S. towns
By hazard

What Lake Ridge 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

82%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

8%of expected building damage
Above average · higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 12 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Tornadoes Earthquakes Hail Strong wind Ice storms Winter storms Cold waves Lightning Wildfire 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 heat waves at 10% of Lake Ridge’s expected losses. Heat waves do 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 Lake Ridge’s grade

River and rain flooding is 82% of the building damage FEMA expects in Lake Ridge, and Lake Ridge’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts. Next is hurricanes at 8% (higher than 70% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Lake Ridge sits
Lake Ridge
Least damageMiddleMost damage

A− #132 of 253 in Virginia; lower expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns (21,298).

Lake Ridge’s residents live in 11 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding82%Hurricanes8%Tornadoes3%Everything else7%

The typical Virginia town has lower expected damage than 81% of U.S. towns; within the state, Lake Ridge has more expected damage per building than 52% of Virginia towns.

In dollars, FEMA expects about $5.9M a year in losses across Lake Ridge: $4.5M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

A firm figure. It combines 11 census tracts by where Lake Ridge’s residents live. FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims and disasters below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Lake Ridge flood? Rarely: 7 flood claims since 2006

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Lake Ridge, from FEMA’s records: 0.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 91% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.

Paid flood claims, by year
2006: 1 claim2007: 0 claims2008: 1 claim2009: 0 claims2010: 0 claims2011: 1 claim2012: 0 claims2013: 0 claims2014: 0 claims2015: 0 claims2016: 0 claims2017: 0 claims2018: 3 claims2019: 0 claims2020: 0 claims2021: 0 claims2022: 0 claims2023: 0 claims2024: 1 claim2025: 0 claims2026: 0 claims200620082018
20062026
Biggest named events
  • Hurricane Debby1 claim · $7K
7
paid claims since 2006
$36K
paid to owners
0
homes flooded more than once
$5K
average claim
of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

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

Insurance rates: Prince William County.
Disasters

The storms Lake Ridge remembers

None of the 16 disasters declared for Prince William County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Lake Ridge itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.

  1. 20183 flood claims paidThe year of Hurricane Florence, declared for Prince William County
  2. 20061 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
  3. 20081 flood claims paidNo declaration for the county that year
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Lake RidgePrince William County only

Prince William 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 Lake Ridge after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Lake Ridge archive →
Next door

Lake Ridge and its neighbors

Lake Ridge is 4th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Potomac Mills: hazard risk ACounty Center: hazard risk B+Dale City: hazard risk AOccoquan: hazard risk C+Woodbridge: hazard risk APotomac MillsCounty CenterDale CityOccoquanWoodbridgeLake Ridge
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
WoodbridgeAless damage than 93%river and rain flooding59
Potomac MillsAless damage than 86%river and rain flooding17
Dale CityAless damage than 86%river and rain flooding10
Lake RidgeA−less damage than 80%river and rain flooding7
County CenterB+less damage than 70%river and rain flooding—
OccoquanC+more damage than 59%river and rain flooding10

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.

Be ready

Get ready for what Lake Ridge 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 Lake Ridge

Is Lake Ridge at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Lake Ridge has lower expected damage per building than 80% of U.S. towns: A− for hazard risk, #132 of 253 in Virginia. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (82%) and hurricanes (8%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Does Lake Ridge flood?

Flood insurance has paid 7 claims in Lake Ridge since 2006, $36K in all, or 0.4 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 91% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Debby (1).

Is Lake Ridge 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 Prince William County, 46% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.3% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Lake Ridge?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Lake Ridge’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 Lake Ridge?

By flood claims, Hurricane Debby: 1 paid, $7K.

Is Lake Ridge at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (82%), and Lake Ridge’s rate for it is lower than 59% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Lake Ridge.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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