Natural hazards · Hester

Hester, LA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Hester comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. 5 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Hester?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Hester to be higher than in 90% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes.

Hurricanes61%Drought13%Inland flooding8%Tornadoes7%Everything else11%

By hazard

What Hester faces

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

Hurricanes

61% of expected damage

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

Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Drought

13% of expected damage

Recorded about 22 times a year in the area

Inland flooding

8% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 9% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 years in the area

Tornadoes

7% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 69% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 18 years in the area

Lower here

Coastal floodingHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightning

Not a risk here

AvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic 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 Hester flood?

FEMA's records show no paid flood insurance claims in Hester.

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: St. James Parish.

Disasters that hit Hester

5 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into HesterDeclared for St. James Parish only

2024

Hurricane Francine

9 households applied for aid $7K aid approved

2021

Hurricane Ida

93 households applied for aid $101K aid approved

2012

Hurricane Isaac

7 households applied for aid

2008

Hurricane Gustav

23 households applied for aid $24K aid approved

2005

Hurricane Katrina

50 households applied for aid $27K aid approved

St. James Parish has had 31 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. Hester 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 Hester’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Hester. 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.