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Counties with the most emergency shelters in Maryland
As climate change drives weather to greater extremes, and devastating hurricanes, wildfires, droughts, and blizzards preoccupy an increasing number of Americans, it is hard to avoid comparing the reality of everyday news coverage to the computer-generated images seen in disaster movies.
Over the last 50 years, natural disasters have become five times more common due to climate change, according to the World Meteorological Organization. They've also become more economically debilitating—the five most expensive climate disasters in American history have all taken place over the last two decades.
The increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters means that the need for emergency evacuation and shelter plans has never been greater. According to the Federal Emergency Management Association, understanding your climate risk, or proximity to probable natural disaster, is an important first step for making a plan. Tools like the Climate Mapping for Resilience and Adaptation allow you to assess your risk by location.
Knowing where nearby emergency shelters are located is another way to prepare for the worst. In the event of flooding, hurricane-level winds, or other disasters, emergency shelters offer a place to sleep, and also often provide food, water, and first aid services. Stacker examined the Department of Homeland Security's National Shelter System Facilities database to identify the counties with the most emergency shelters in Maryland. Counties are ranked by emergency shelters per 100K people, with total capacity per 100K people serving as a tiebreaker.
Editor's Note: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the total emergency shelter capacity in each county. Due to the variable availability of that data for each shelter, the data point has been removed from the updated version.
#21. Anne Arundel County
- Shelters listed with generators: 3
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#20. Baltimore city
- Shelters listed with generators: 0
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#19. Carroll County
- Shelters listed with generators: 2
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#18. Calvert County
- Shelters listed with generators: 0
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#17. Howard County
- Shelters listed with generators: 0
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#16. Charles County
- Shelters listed with generators: 2
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#15. Harford County
- Shelters listed with generators: 0
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#14. Montgomery County
- Shelters listed with generators: 25
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 4
#13. Baltimore County
- Shelters listed with generators: 0
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#12. Frederick County
- Shelters listed with generators: 9
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#11. Washington County
- Shelters listed with generators: 2
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#10. Caroline County
- Shelters listed with generators: 0
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#9. Cecil County
- Shelters listed with generators: 12
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#8. Talbot County
- Shelters listed with generators: 1
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#7. Wicomico County
- Shelters listed with generators: 5
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#6. Kent County
- Shelters listed with generators: 1
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#5. Dorchester County
- Shelters listed with generators: 0
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#4. Worcester County
- Shelters listed with generators: 2
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 4
#3. Allegany County
- Shelters listed with generators: 8
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#2. Garrett County
- Shelters listed with generators: 7
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 0
#1. Somerset County
- Shelters listed with generators: 1
- Shelters listed in 100-year floodplain: 2