Maryland floods
Every recorded flood since 1996 · 24 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 3,545 floods and flash floods in Maryland from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 129 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the June 27, 2006 flash flood in Frederick County: 5 deaths, 1 injury and $6.7 million in damage in 2025 dollars across 3 records. Maryland ranks 22nd of 52 states and territories by count and 3rd of 51 per square mile.
Floods in Maryland, 1996 to 2026
Flood records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 3,5451996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 129average
- Deaths
- 2436 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $375Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 2018549 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are floods and flash floods common in Maryland?
Maryland averages about 129 floods and flash floods a year since 2000, 22nd of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2018 (549). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Maryland records 3651 floods and flash floods since 1996, 3rd of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Maryland have the most floods and flash floods?
Per square mile, Anne Arundel County leads Maryland: 174 days with a flood since 1996, 419.5 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Baltimore County has the most flood records (484 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is flood season in Maryland?
Maryland's floods and flash floods by month. The busiest month is July (698 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 105 · Feb 92 · Mar 94 · Apr 147 · May 301 · Jun 434 · Jul 698 · Aug 603 · Sep 656 · Oct 193 · Nov 106 · Dec 116 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest floods and flash floods in Maryland?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-06-27 | Flash FloodCountywide, Frederick County One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. A weak cold front settled over the forecast area from June 23 until June 27. Waves of low pressure rode northeast along the front. Flow in the atmosphere was parallel to the boundary, producing several rounds of training echoes. As a result, double digit rainfall totals affected parts of the region through the five ... | 5 | 1 | $6.7M | |
| 2003-11-19 | Flash FloodBaltimore (city) Creeks and roads were flooded. | 4 | 0 | – | |
| 2015-06-27 | Flash FloodParkwood, Montgomery County Two people were electrocuted in a stairwell going down into a basement that was flooded. Reports stated a portable sump pump was in the standing water in the basement. | 2 | 0 | $12K | |
| 2018-08-31 | Flash FloodCalvary, Harford County A car was swept underneath a bridge along James Run road near the intersection of State Route 136 and James Run Road. The car was later found near the intersection of Calvary Road and Schucks Road. Two fatalities occurred; one in the car swept downstream, and another of a person who attempted to assist the disabled ... | 2 | 0 | – | |
| 2016-07-30 | Flash FloodEllicott City, Howard County The survey revealed clear signs of flooding both from the Patapsco River and from flash flooding within Ellicott City. Signs of flooding, including damaged pavement, were observed as far up as the intersection of Rogers Avenue and Frederick Road, where Hudson Branch came out of its banks. From this location, ... | 2 | 0 | $28M | |
| 1996-06-19 | Flash FloodS Portion, Baltimore County | 2 | 0 | $47K | |
| 2021-09-01 | Flash FloodAutrey Park, Montgomery County Floodwaters rushed into the Rock Creek Woods Apartments shortly before 3 AM EST according to Montgomery County Police and Fire Officials. The water rose almost to the ceilings in some cases. A 19 year old male was deceased due to the floodwaters. Three people were hospitalized due to injuries that were not life ... | 1 | 4 | $1.1M | |
| 2011-09-07 | Tropical Storm Lee · FloodEarleigh Hgts, Anne Arundel County A 49 year old male drowned in floodwaters of the Magothy River on Riverside Drive. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2015-05-19 | FloodSavage, Howard County A pickup truck was swept off Brock Bridge Road by flood waters. The truck moved 150 feet south and ended in the Patuxent River. | 1 | 0 | $12K | |
| 2013-01-31 | Flash FloodMaryland City, Anne Arundel County A homeless woman drowned as rains flooded a homeless camp in Maryland City near the Patuxent River. Also, there were two females extracted from their vehicle stuck in standing water at Brock Bridge Road and Whiskey Bottom Road. | 1 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest floods and flash floods in Maryland
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-01-19 | FloodMontgomery County · forecast zone Montgomery One storm episode: 4 records in 4 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $85M | |
| 2018-05-15 | Flash FloodFt Detrick, Frederick County One storm episode: 3 records in 2 places; the totals are the episode's. | 0 | 0 | $57M | |
| 1999-09-16 | Hurricane Floyd · Flash FloodCountywide, Queen Anne's County One named storm filed by several offices: 10 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 0 | 21 | $36M | |
| 2016-07-30 | Flash FloodEllicott City, Howard County | 2 | 0 | $28M | |
| 2018-05-27 | Flash FloodEllicott City, Howard County One storm episode: 3 records in 3 places; the totals are the episode's. | 1 | 0 | $26M | |
| 1996-09-06 | Tropical Storm Fran · FloodAllegany County · forecast zone Allegany One named storm filed by several offices: 5 records in 2 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 0 | 0 | $21M | |
| 2012-10-29 | Hurricane Sandy · Coastal FloodSomerset County · forecast zone Somerset One named storm filed by several offices: 10 records in 3 episodes; the totals are the storm's. | 0 | 0 | $18M | |
| 1996-01-19 | Flash FloodAllegany County | 0 | 0 | $13M |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are floods and flash floods becoming more frequent in Maryland?
Maryland's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Maryland | United States | Maryland's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 191 | 20,986 | 0.9% |
| 2000s | 533 | 54,913 | 1.0% |
| 2010s | 1,748 | 68,322 | 2.6% |
| 2020-26 | 1,073 | 43,563 | 2.5% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent floods and flash floods in Maryland
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-23 | Flash FloodMaryland Beach, Worcester County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2026-06-23 | Flash FloodOcean City, Worcester County | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-30 | Coastal FloodTalbot County · forecast zone Talbot | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-30 | Coastal FloodQueen Anne's County · forecast zone Queen Annes | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-30 | Coastal FloodCaroline County · forecast zone Caroline | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-29 | Coastal FloodWicomico County · forecast zone Wicomico | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-29 | Coastal FloodDorchester County · forecast zone Dorchester | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-19 | Coastal FloodAnne Arundel County · forecast zone Anne Arundel | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-18 | Coastal FloodSomerset County · forecast zone Somerset | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-18 | Coastal FloodDorchester County · forecast zone Dorchester | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-12 | Coastal FloodWorcester County · forecast zone Maryland Beaches | 0 | 0 | – | |
| 2025-10-12 | Coastal FloodWorcester County · forecast zone Inland Worcester | 0 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for floods and flash floods in Maryland
FEMA has declared 14 disasters in Maryland for floods and flash floods, counting its incident type and declarations that name flood in the title (FEMA files most storm disasters under Severe Storm); 14 were major disasters, the latest on July 2, 2018.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-07-02 | DR-4376 | Severe Storm and Flooding | 2 |
| 2018-06-25 | DR-4374 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 2 |
| 2016-09-16 | DR-4279 | Severe Storm and Flooding | 1 |
| 2011-10-05 | DR-4038 | Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee | 7 |
| 2006-07-02 | DR-1652 | Severe Storms, Flooding, and Tornadoes | 3 |
| 1996-09-17 | DR-1139 | Severe Storms and Flooding Assoc With Tropical Storm Fran | 3 |
| 1996-01-23 | DR-1094 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 6 |
| 1986-09-10 | DR-773 | Severe Storm & Flooding | 1 |
| 1979-09-14 | DR-601 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes & Flooding | 5 |
| 1976-10-14 | DR-522 | Severe Storms & Flooding | 2 |
| 1975-10-04 | DR-489 | Heavy Rains & Flooding | 14 |
| 1972-06-23 | DR-341 | Tropical Storm Agnes | 21 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Anne Arundel County: the county's whole recordThe Maryland county with the most floods and flash floods per square mile
- Floods across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in MarylandTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Maryland8,467 records
- Winter storms in Maryland4,573 records
- Hail in Maryland1,580 records