Natural hazards · New Orleans
New Orleans, LA natural hazards
Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in New Orleans comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 91,224 claims here since 1978. 21 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.
FEMA National Risk Index, December 2025 · OpenFEMA claims, aid & declarationsExpected damage
How exposed is New Orleans?
Very high
vs. U.S. communitiesFEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in New Orleans to be higher than in 95% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and inland flooding.
Hurricanes73%Inland flooding15%Cold waves5%Everything else6%
By hazard
What New Orleans faces
Each hazard’s share of the damage FEMA expects here, and how that compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
73% of expected damage
Well above average · among the top 1% of U.S. places
Recorded about once every 4 years in the area
Inland flooding
15% of expected damage
Above average · higher than 56% of U.S. places
Recorded about 3 times a year in the area
Cold waves
5% of expected damage
Well above average · higher than 90% of U.S. places
Recorded about once a year in the area
Lower here
Coastal floodingTornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought
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 New Orleans flood?
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in New Orleans, from FEMA’s records.
91,224paid claims since 1978
$6,391Mpaid to owners
0homes flooded more than once
19782026
Biggest named events
- Hurricane Katrina: 52,774 claims, $5,931M
- Tropical Storm Isidore: 1,759 claims, $14.7M
- Hurricane Ida: 782 claims, $26.6M
of all homes
are insured
are insured
No community discount. New Orleans isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Orleans Parish.
What’s been done with FEMA grants
466homes raised above flood level
11buildings retrofitted against wind
1buildings floodproofed
1storm safe rooms built
1flood-prone properties bought out and cleared
Disasters that hit New Orleans
21 federal disasters brought FEMA money here
Disasters the President declared that paid out in New Orleans itself: aid to households, or repair grants to the City of New Orleans.
Brought FEMA money into New OrleansDeclared for Orleans Parish only
2024
Hurricane Francine
179 households applied for aid $227K aid approved
2021
Hurricane Ida
161,558 households applied for aid $227M aid approved $48.6M to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2021
Severe Winter Storms
1 household applied for aid
2020
Hurricane Zeta
6,938 households applied for aid $4.5M aid approved $3.7M to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2020
Hurricane Delta
3 households applied for aid
2020
Hurricane Sally
$446K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2020
Hurricane Laura
11 households applied for aid $7K aid approved $414K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2020
Tropical Storm Cristobal
$29K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2019
Hurricane Barry
$2.6M to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2017
Tropical Storm Nate
$869K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2017
Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Straight-Line Winds
2,839 households applied for aid $2.8M aid approved
2012
Hurricane Isaac
52,178 households applied for aid $15.7M aid approved $16.2M to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2008
Hurricane Ike
678 households applied for aid $438K aid approved
2008
Hurricane Gustav
59,620 households applied for aid $7.5M aid approved $19.7M to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2007
Severe Storms and Tornadoes
883 households applied for aid $444K aid approved
2005
Hurricane Rita
1,284 households applied for aid $1.3M aid approved $7K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2005
Hurricane Katrina
375,198 households applied for aid $2,933M aid approved $2,456M to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2004
Hurricane Ivan
4,813 households applied for aid $1.5M aid approved $1.1M to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2002
Hurricane Lili
$747K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2002
Tropical Storm Isidore
$344K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
2001
Tropical Storm Allison
$142K to the City of New Orleans for repairs
Orleans Parish has had 26 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.
Around New Orleans
New Orleans and the towns around it
Very lowLowModerateHighVery high
Metairiemostly hurricanesVery high
New Orleansmostly hurricanesVery high
Gretnamostly hurricanesVery high
Terrytownmostly hurricanesVery high
Arabimostly hurricanesVery high
Westwegomostly hurricanesVery high
Harveymostly hurricanesVery high
Merauxmostly hurricanesVery high
Marreromostly hurricanesVery high
Chalmettemostly hurricanesVery high
Jeffersonmostly hurricanesVery high
Violetmostly hurricanesVery high
Poydrasmostly hurricanesVery high
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. New Orleans covers 183 census tracts, combined by population.
Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to New Orleans’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the City of New Orleans. FEMA’s model follows property values, so a place that recently lost many homes can rate lower than it feels.
FEMA’s expected losses across New Orleans total about $304M a year, counting buildings, people and crops.
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.