Natural hazards · Bunkie

Bunkie, LA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Bunkie comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is moderate for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 34 claims here since 1984. 9 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarations

Expected damage

How exposed is Bunkie?

Moderate

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Bunkie to be higher than in 41% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and drought.

Hurricanes26%Drought17%Tornadoes15%Inland flooding15%Cold waves14%Everything else13%

By hazard

What Bunkie faces

Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.

Hurricanes

26% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 7 years in the area

Drought

17% of expected damage

Recorded about 18 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

15% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 77% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 13 years in the area

Inland flooding

15% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 4% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Cold waves

14% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 98% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Lower here

HailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity

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

Flood insurance claims

Does Bunkie flood?

Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bunkie, from FEMA’s records.

34paid claims since 1984

$691Kpaid to owners

4homes flooded more than once

19842026

Biggest named events

Hurricane Gustav: 2 claims, $63K
Hurricane Rita: 1 claim, $6K
Tropical Storm Nicholas: 1 claim, $14K

Homes that flooded again and again

■ FEMA “severe repetitive loss” (1) ■ flooded 2+ times

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Bunkie isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Avoyelles Parish.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

4homes raised above flood level

1flood-prone properties bought out and cleared

Disasters that hit Bunkie

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

Disasters the President declared that paid out in Bunkie itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the City of Bunkie.

Brought FEMA money into BunkieDeclared for Avoyelles Parish only

2026

Tropical Storm Arthur

159 households applied for aid $497K aid approved

2021

Severe Winter Storms

49 households applied for aid $34K aid approved

2020

Hurricane Delta

6 households applied for aid $4K aid approved

2020

Hurricane Laura

1 household applied for aid

2016

Severe Storms and Flooding

54 households applied for aid $85K aid approved

2008

Hurricane Gustav

676 households applied for aid $336K aid approved $446K to the City of Bunkie for repairs

2005

Hurricane Rita

28 households applied for aid $33K aid approved $31K to the City of Bunkie for repairs

2005

Hurricane Katrina

$54K to the City of Bunkie for repairs

2002

Hurricane Lili

$68K to the City of Bunkie for repairs

Avoyelles Parish has had 29 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.

About these numbers

How to read this page

An average, not a forecastFEMA’s National Risk Index estimates the damage 18 kinds of natural hazards cause in a typical year, from decades of records and models. A quiet decade can follow a bad year.

Compared by rate“Higher than N%” compares yearly damage as a share of what’s here, so a big city isn’t rated riskier just for having more buildings. Bunkie is smaller than a census tract, so it shares the figures of the tract around its center.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Bunkie’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of Bunkie. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025); 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. Census tracts: U.S. Census Bureau.