Natural hazards · Pearl River

Pearl River, LA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Pearl River comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 30 claims here since 1980. 9 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Pearl River?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Pearl River to be higher than in 95% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and inland flooding.

Hurricanes59%Inland flooding26%Everything else15%

By hazard

What Pearl River faces

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

Hurricanes

59% of expected damage

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

Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Inland flooding

26% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 80% of U.S. places

Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Lower here

TornadoesHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat wavesWildfireEarthquakesLandslidesStrong windLightningDrought

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 Pearl River flood?

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

30paid claims since 1980

$615Kpaid to owners

5homes flooded more than once

19802026

Biggest named events

Tropical Storm Allison: 4 claims, $65K
Hurricane Gustav: 2 claims, $19K
Hurricane Katrina: 2 claims, $45K

Homes that flooded again and again

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

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. Pearl River 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. Tammany Parish.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

17homes raised above flood level

Disasters that hit Pearl River

9 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into Pearl RiverDeclared for St. Tammany Parish only

2026

Tropical Storm Arthur

45 households applied for aid $308K aid approved

2021

Hurricane Ida

3,182 households applied for aid $3.2M aid approved $201K to the Town of Pearl River for repairs

2016

Severe Storms and Flooding

89 households applied for aid $173K aid approved $90K to the Town of Pearl River for repairs

2012

Hurricane Isaac

792 households applied for aid $598K aid approved $47K to the Town of Pearl River for repairs

2008

Hurricane Ike

8 households applied for aid $9K aid approved

2008

Hurricane Gustav

838 households applied for aid $217K aid approved $13K to the Town of Pearl River for repairs

2005

Hurricane Rita

174 households applied for aid $78K aid approved

2005

Hurricane Katrina

5,749 households applied for aid $17.8M aid approved $518K to the Town of Pearl River for repairs

2004

Hurricane Ivan

5 households applied for aid $4K aid approved

St. Tammany Parish has had 37 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. Pearl River 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 Pearl River’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to the Town of Pearl River. 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.