Natural hazards · St. James

St. James, LA natural hazards

Most of the natural-hazard damage FEMA expects in St. James comes from hurricanes, and overall the risk is very high for a U.S. community. 6 federal disasters brought FEMA money into town.

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

Expected damage

How exposed is St. James?

Very high

vs. U.S. communities

FEMA expects yearly storm and flood damage to homes and buildings in St. James to be higher than in 88% of U.S. communities, mostly from hurricanes and drought.

Hurricanes61%Drought19%Tornadoes7%Inland flooding7%Everything else7%

By hazard

What St. James 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 97% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 4 years in the area

Drought

19% of expected damage

Recorded about 22 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

7% of expected damage

Above average · higher than 68% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 17 years in the area

Inland flooding

7% of expected damage

Well below average · higher than 3% of U.S. places

Recorded about once every 2 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 St. James flood?

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

of homes in flood zones
are insured

of all homes
are insured

No community discount. St. James 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.

What’s been done with FEMA grants

3buildings retrofitted against wind

Disasters that hit St. James

6 federal disasters brought FEMA money here

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

Brought FEMA money into St. JamesDeclared for St. James Parish only

2024

Hurricane Francine

282 households applied for aid $604K aid approved

2021

Hurricane Ida

763 households applied for aid $2.6M aid approved

2016

Severe Storms and Flooding

47 households applied for aid $32K aid approved

2012

Hurricane Isaac

193 households applied for aid $190K aid approved

2008

Hurricane Gustav

469 households applied for aid $1.0M aid approved

2005

Hurricane Katrina

739 households applied for aid $1.1M aid approved

St. James Parish has had 31 natural disasters declared since 1953, most often hurricanes and floods.

Around St. James

St. James and the towns around it

Very lowLowModerateHighVery high

Conventmostly hurricanesVery high

Romevillemostly hurricanesVery high

St. Jamesmostly hurricanesVery high

Welcomemostly 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. St. James 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 St. James’s own flood-insurance community; household aid to the registrant’s city; repair grants to St. James. 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.