Photo: Z28scrambler · CC BY-SA 4.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Baldwin than in 95% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baldwin gets a D for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (74%), then river and rain flooding (15%). Flood insurance has paid 37 claims here since 1979.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What stands out about Baldwin’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Baldwin faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
River and rain flooding
Coastal flooding
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Baldwin’s grade
Hurricanes are 74% of the building damage FEMA expects in Baldwin, and Baldwin’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 8%, at a rate in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
D higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Baldwin’s residents live in 3 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.0M a year in losses across Baldwin: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Baldwin flood? Sometimes: 37 flood claims since 1979
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Baldwin, from FEMA’s records: 35.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Ike4 claims · $82K
- Hurricane Rita4 claims · $82K
- Hurricane Gustav2 claims · $29K
Baldwin 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. Mary Parish.11 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Baldwin
Disasters that paid out in Baldwin itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Baldwin), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Francine302 households applied for aid$1.5M aid approved2 flood claims paid for it, $11K
- 2021Hurricane Ida286 households applied for aid$537K aid approved
- 2019Hurricane Barry$57K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
- 2012Hurricane Isaac263 households applied for aid$486K aid approved
- 2011Flooding$10K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
- 2008Hurricane Ike174 households applied for aid$438K aid approved$73K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs4 flood claims paid for it, $82K
Show all 11
- 2008Hurricane Gustav564 households applied for aid$875K aid approved$158K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs2 flood claims paid for it, $29K
- 2005Hurricane Rita679 households applied for aid$809K aid approved$51K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs4 flood claims paid for it, $82K
- 2005Hurricane Katrina156 households applied for aid$278K aid approved$1K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
- 2002Hurricane Lili$38K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs2 flood claims paid for it, $4K
- 2001Tropical Storm Allison$12K to the Town of Baldwin for repairs
St. Mary Parish has had 34 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods.
Old photos of Baldwin after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Baldwin archive →Baldwin and its neighbors
Baldwin has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baldwin | Dmore damage than 95% | hurricanes | 37 |
| Charenton | D−more damage than 96% | hurricanes | — |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Baldwin faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Know your evacuation zone and the way off the coast.
- Storm surge comes fast: leave when you’re told, not when the water arrives.
- Move cars to high ground before king tides and nor’easters.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Baldwin
Is Baldwin at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Baldwin has higher expected damage per building than 95% of U.S. towns: D for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (74%) and river and rain flooding (15%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Baldwin flood?
Flood insurance has paid 37 claims in Baldwin since 1979, $361K in all, or 35.5 per 1,000 homes, more than 90% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. 7 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Ike (4).
Is Baldwin in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In St. Mary Parish, 26% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 12.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Baldwin?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Baldwin’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Baldwin?
By FEMA money that reached Baldwin, Hurricane Francine (2024): 302 households applied for aid, $1.5M approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Ike: 4 paid, $82K.
Is Baldwin at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (74%), and Baldwin’s rate for it is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Baldwin.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Baldwin’s residents lived in the 2020 census; 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. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.