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Risk & Response

Maryland

Statewide risk profile

6.2M
Population
24
Counties
236
Departments
638
Stations

Natural Hazard Loss Profile

Expected annual loss across the 18 natural hazards in FEMA's National Risk Index. Life safety is expressed in fatality-equivalents, combining expected deaths and injuries. Property loss counts building damage only, not agriculture.

Natural Hazard Life Safety
23.4
expected fatality-equivalents per year, natural hazards only
35th highest of 50
Life Safety per 100k
0.38
natural hazard fatality-equivalents per 100,000 residents
45th highest of 50
Natural Hazard Property Loss
$695.6M
expected building loss per year, natural hazards only
38th highest of 50
Property Loss per Resident
$112
natural hazard building loss per resident per year
50th highest of 50

These figures cover natural hazards only. Structure fire, EMS, and motor vehicle incidents are not in the National Risk Index, so this is not an all-cause life safety measure. For Maryland, the largest single contributor is Heat Wave, 44% of the life-safety total.

Maryland carries an expected 23 natural hazard fatality-equivalents and $695.6M in building loss per year. Ranks compare the 50 states. Computed from census tract data covering every resident, independent of fire department boundaries.

Add fire mortality, cause, and loss

Natural hazard exposure is only part of the risk. Fire deaths and injuries, cause of ignition, and dollar loss per incident come from NERIS incident reporting, which grows as departments in Maryland enroll. Our Regional tier adds that data for the departments your jurisdiction sponsors, next to public risk and NERIS adoption for every department in Maryland.

Talk to us about Maryland See what a department sees

Loss Breakdown

65%
30%
Property (buildings): $695.6M (65.5%)
Life safety: $320.4M (30.2%)
Agriculture: $46.5M (4.4%)

Total expected annual loss: $1,062,525,797 per year. Life safety is shown here in dollars, at FEMA's $13.7M value of statistical life, so the three shares sum to the total.

Hazards Ranked Two Ways

The hazard that threatens people is often not the hazard that destroys buildings. Both columns cover the same 18 hazards over the same year.

By life-safety loss ($/yr)

Heat Wave
$139.8M
Cold Wave
$47.1M
Tornado
$30.7M
Strong Wind
$25.0M
Inland Flooding
$24.2M
Lightning
$20.7M

By property loss ($/yr)

Inland Flooding
$466.2M
Hurricane
$107.9M
Earthquake
$36.3M
Coastal Flooding
$27.2M
Tornado
$23.0M
Strong Wind
$14.2M

County Risk Map

Shaded by quintile across counties in this state. Click any county for its full profile.

Fire Service Profile

32%
62%
Career: 5%
Combination: 32%
Volunteer: 62%
Unreported: 1%
Residents per Station
9,727
census population per registered station
Stations per 100k
10.3
registered stations per 100,000 residents

Department composition covers the 236 departments registered in NERIS Public for Maryland. Departments that have not registered are not counted. The mix is computed over the departments NERIS registers to Maryland; departments based elsewhere that respond into it are counted in the total above but not in the mix. Station coverage divides census population by registered stations; department service areas overlap, so their populations are not summed.

County Rankings

Counties in Maryland ranked by risk. Click column headers to sort. Click a county to see its departments.

NRI Rating is from FEMA's National Risk Index, which measures community risk across 18 natural hazards using expected annual losses, social vulnerability, and community resilience. Life-Safety Loss uses FEMA's Value of Statistical Life ($13.7M per expected fatality) to estimate annual risk to human life.

Department and station counts are derived from boundaries self-reported through NERIS Public and may not reflect current service areas. A department serving several counties is counted in each, so the Departments column adds up to more than the statewide department total. Risk metrics are computed from census tract data and are not affected by boundary accuracy. See full methodology.

Showing 24 counties
County ▲ Population ▲ Departments ▲ Life-Safety Loss ▼ NRI Rating ▲
Baltimore city 573,243 2 $66.0M Relatively Low
Baltimore County 850,796 17 $65.4M Relatively Low
Prince George's County 959,754 31 $34.9M Very Low
Montgomery County 1.1M 7 $28.1M Very Low
Anne Arundel County 598,166 20 $23.9M Very Low
Harford County 263,757 17 $15.9M Relatively Low
Howard County 336,328 4 $15.8M Very Low
Frederick County 287,048 18 $14.8M Very Low
Carroll County 175,321 15 $7.3M Relatively Low
Cecil County 104,960 12 $6.5M Relatively Low
Charles County 170,527 2 $5.3M Very Low
St. Mary's County 115,126 5 $4.5M Relatively Low
Wicomico County 104,914 9 $4.2M Relatively Moderate
Washington County 155,709 15 $4.1M Relatively Low
Calvert County 94,313 5 $3.6M Relatively Low
Worcester County 53,700 2 $3.3M Relatively Moderate
Talbot County 37,917 5 $3.3M Relatively Moderate
Queen Anne's County 51,825 10 $2.5M Relatively Low
Caroline County 33,669 9 $2.4M Relatively Moderate
Allegany County 67,452 24 $2.3M Relatively Low
Dorchester County 32,754 12 $2.1M Relatively Moderate
Somerset County 24,822 7 $1.6M Very High
Kent County 19,346 5 $1.5M Relatively High
Garrett County 28,615 15 $849.5K Relatively Low
No counties match your search.
Don't see your department? Profiles exist for every department in NERIS Public with a published boundary polygon. Departments registered without a boundary, or not yet registered with NERIS, do not have a page yet because the analysis is geography-based. See why a department might be missing or contact us and we will look into it.

Risk Snapshot

9.4%
Poverty Rate
16.7%
Age 65+
11.6%
Disability Rate
6.3%
Uninsured
51.2%
Pre-1980 Housing
1.3%
Mobile Homes
7.7%
Vacancy Rate
1.0%
Wood Heat
$114,417
Median HH Income

FEMA Disaster Declarations

99
Last 10 Years
309
Last 25 Years
Hurricane
Most Frequent

Every department in your region, on one briefing

Our Regional tier gives state fire marshals and county fire authorities one briefing across every department in the jurisdiction: priority tracts ranked by risk and demand, NERIS adoption by county, and a quarterly report with a page per department. Response times appear for the departments you sponsor. Free 90-day pilot.

Explore the Regional Tier See the Response Demo