Natural hazards · Prairieville

Prairieville, LA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in Prairieville comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. Flood insurance has paid 259 claims here since 2001. 8 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is Prairieville?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in Prairieville to be higher than in 85% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes.

Hurricanes63%Inland flooding15%Tornadoes12%Everything else10%

By hazard

What Prairieville faces

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

Hurricanes

63% of expected damage

Well above average · higher than 96% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 5 years in the area

Inland flooding

15% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 19% of U.S. places

Recorded about once a year in the area

Tornadoes

12% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 72% of U.S. places

Lower here

Coastal floodingHailIce stormsWinter weatherCold wavesHeat 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 Prairieville flood?

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

259paid claims since 2001

$23.8Mpaid to owners

0homes flooded more than once

20012026

Biggest named events

Mid-summer severe storms: 197 claims, $20.8M
2021 Mid-Spring Severe Storms: 36 claims, $2.2M
Hurricane Isaac: 3 claims, $17K

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

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

Insurance rates: Ascension Parish.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

53homes raised above flood level

33flood-prone properties bought out and cleared

1storm safe rooms built

Disasters that hit Prairieville

8 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into PrairievilleDeclared for Ascension Parish only

2024

Hurricane Francine

597 households applied for aid $618K aid approved

2021

Hurricane Ida

8,846 households applied for aid $5.7M aid approved

2021

Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding

88 households applied for aid $139K aid approved

2016

Severe Storms and Flooding

3,997 households applied for aid $20.8M aid approved

2012

Hurricane Isaac

517 households applied for aid $359K aid approved

2008

Hurricane Gustav

3,335 households applied for aid $1.7M aid approved

2005

Hurricane Rita

712 households applied for aid $565K aid approved

2005

Hurricane Katrina

2,388 households applied for aid $1.8M aid approved

Ascension Parish has had 44 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.

Around Prairieville

Prairieville and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Prairievillemostly hurricanesVery high

St. Georgemostly inland floodingModerate

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. Prairieville covers 7 census tracts, combined by population.

Money that reached townFlood claims are matched to Prairieville’s own flood-insurance community (here, the census tracts inside it); household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to Prairieville. 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 Prairieville total about $34.8M 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.