San Francisco Plantation House · Photo: Russell Lee · Public domainMore hazard damage per building is expected in Garyville than in 96% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Garyville gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (79%), then river and rain flooding (15%). Flood insurance has paid 54 claims here since 1985.
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 Garyville’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Garyville 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
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 Garyville’s grade
Hurricanes are 79% of the building damage FEMA expects in Garyville, and Garyville’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 2%, at a rate in the top 3% of U.S. census tracts.
D− higher expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Garyville’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $2.0M a year in losses across Garyville: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Garyville flood? Sometimes: 54 flood claims since 1985
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Garyville, from FEMA’s records: 59.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 94% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Isaac15 claims · $619K
- Hurricane Francine7 claims · $591K
- Tropical Storm Isidore3 claims · $24K
Garyville 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. John the Baptist Parish.5 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Garyville
Disasters that paid out in Garyville itself (aid to households or repair grants to Garyville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Francine249 households applied for aid$836K aid approved7 flood claims paid for it, $591K
- 2021Hurricane Ida810 households applied for aid$3.0M aid approved3 flood claims paid for it, $89K
- 2012Hurricane Isaac450 households applied for aid$584K aid approved15 flood claims paid for it, $619K
- 2008Hurricane Gustav512 households applied for aid$451K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Katrina912 households applied for aid$1.3M aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
St. John the Baptist Parish has had 34 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods.
Old photos of Garyville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Garyville archive →Garyville and its neighbors
Garyville has the lowest expected damage per building of the 3 graded towns here. 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 Garyville 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.
- 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 Garyville
Is Garyville at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Garyville has higher expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (79%) and river and rain flooding (15%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Garyville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 54 claims in Garyville since 1985, $1.9M in all, or 59.9 per 1,000 homes, more than 94% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Isaac (15).
Is Garyville 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. John the Baptist Parish, 80% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 34.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Garyville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Garyville’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 Garyville?
By FEMA money that reached Garyville, Hurricane Ida (2021): 810 households applied for aid, $3.0M approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Isaac: 15 paid, $619K.
Is Garyville at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (79%), and Garyville’s rate for it is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Garyville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Garyville’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.