TownTapestry
Sign inJoin
MelvilleGood night
Natural hazards · Melville

Melville, LA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Melville comes from inland flooding, and overall the risk is high for a U.S. community. 11 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

How exposed is Melville?

66
High
vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Melville to be higher than in 66% of U.S. communities, mostly from inland flooding and drought.

Inland flooding31%Drought23%Hurricanes18%Tornadoes11%Cold waves9%Everything else7%
By hazard

What Melville faces

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

Inland flooding

31% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 65% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Drought

23% of expected damage
Recorded about 20 times a year in the area

Hurricanes

18% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 88% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 6 years in the area

Tornadoes

11% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 81% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 7 years in the area

Cold waves

9% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 96% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area

Lower here

Coastal floodingHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat 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 Melville flood?

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

of homes in flood zones
are insured
of all homes
are insured
No community discount. Melville 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. Landry Parish.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

1buildings retrofitted against wind
Disasters that hit Melville

11 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into MelvilleDeclared for St. Landry Parish only
2026

Tropical Storm Arthur

56 households applied for aid $223K aid approved
2020

Hurricane Delta

69 households applied for aid $97K aid approved
2020

Hurricane Laura

60 households applied for aid $148K aid approved
2016

Severe Storms and Flooding

88 households applied for aid $90K aid approved
2011

Flooding

$5K to the Town of Melville for repairs
2008

Hurricane Gustav

499 households applied for aid $893K aid approved $28K to the Town of Melville for repairs
2006

Severe Storms and Flooding

54 households applied for aid $51K aid approved
2005

Hurricane Rita

378 households applied for aid $511K aid approved $7K to the Town of Melville for repairs
2005

Hurricane Katrina

$51K to the Town of Melville for repairs
2004

Severe Storms and Flooding

87 households applied for aid $15K aid approved
2002

Hurricane Lili

$12K to the Town of Melville for repairs
St. Landry Parish has had 34 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. Melville 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 Melville’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Melville. 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.

We left the porch light on

Where to, neighbor?

You’re in Melville, LAView boundary

Nearby

All towns & citiesExplore the map

Local begins with a boundary.

See what belongs to your selected town.

Loading boundary…

Melville is your selected town. The feed includes posts assigned to this town, not a distance radius or ZIP code.

Neighborhoods narrow the feed further, while townwide announcements, events, and issues remain visible.

Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
Open detailed map