Photo: Tony Ragas · Public domainStorms, floods and disasters in Buras
Buras isn’t graded for hazard risk: Buras has 607 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 726 claims here since 1983.
What Buras faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
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. 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.
Does Buras flood? Yes: 726 flood claims since 1983
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Buras, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Katrina643 claims · $59.0M
- Hurricane Danny15 claims · $74K
- Hurricane Ida10 claims · $207K
Buras isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Plaquemines Parish.8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Buras
Disasters that paid out in Buras itself (aid to households or repair grants to Buras), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2021Hurricane Ida1,211 households applied for aid$4.2M aid approved10 flood claims paid for it, $207K
- 2020Hurricane Zeta143 households applied for aid$183K aid approved
- 2012Hurricane Isaac1,210 households applied for aid$1.8M aid approved3 flood claims paid for it, $86K
- 2008Hurricane Ike100 households applied for aid$97K aid approved
- 2008Hurricane Gustav374 households applied for aid$146K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Rita809 households applied for aid$2.0M aid approved6 flood claims paid for it, $448K
Show all 8
- 2005Hurricane Katrina2,856 households applied for aid$29.0M aid approved643 flood claims paid for it, $59.0M
- 2004Hurricane Ivan634 households applied for aid$628K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
Plaquemines Parish has had 33 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then winter storms.
Old photos of Buras after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Buras archive →Buras and its neighbors
How expected damage per building compares across the town line. Tap a town to see its hazards.
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 Buras 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.
- 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 Buras
Does Buras flood?
Flood insurance has paid 726 claims in Buras since 1983, $60.1M in all. The most claims came from Hurricane Katrina (643).
Is Buras 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 Plaquemines Parish, 53% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 51.1% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Buras?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Buras’ 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 Buras?
By FEMA money that reached Buras, Hurricane Katrina (2005): 2,856 households applied for aid, $29.0M approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Katrina: 643 paid, $59.0M.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Buras.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Buras’ 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.