Photo: Infrogmation · CC BY 2.5Storms, floods and disasters in Madisonville
Madisonville isn’t graded for hazard risk: Madisonville has 869 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 455 claims here since 1985.
What Madisonville 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.
Does Madisonville flood? Yes: 455 flood claims since 1985
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Madisonville, from FEMA’s records.
- Hurricane Isaac155 claims · $8.0M
- Hurricane Ida138 claims · $7.2M
- Hurricane Katrina80 claims · $4.1M
Madisonville 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. Tammany Parish.13 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Madisonville
Disasters that paid out in Madisonville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Madisonville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2026Tropical Storm Arthur11 households applied for aid$58K aid approved
- 2024Hurricane Francine$45K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs4 flood claims paid that year
- 2021Hurricane Ida4,288 households applied for aid$2.9M aid approved$908K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs138 flood claims paid for it, $7.2M
- 2016Severe Storms and Flooding18 households applied for aid$1K aid approved
- 2016Severe Storms and Flooding7 households applied for aid$245 aid approved
- 2012Hurricane Isaac654 households applied for aid$863K aid approved$89K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs155 flood claims paid for it, $8.0M
Show all 13
- 2008Hurricane Ike28 households applied for aid$26K aid approved16 flood claims paid for it, $462K
- 2008Hurricane Gustav756 households applied for aid$123K aid approved$58K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs15 flood claims paid for it, $555K
- 2005Hurricane Rita149 households applied for aid$47K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Katrina3,281 households applied for aid$7.4M aid approved$579K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs80 flood claims paid for it, $4.1M
- 2004Hurricane Ivan3 households applied for aid$1K aid approved5 flood claims paid that year
- 2002Hurricane Lili$56K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs
- 2002Tropical Storm Isidore$2K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs16 flood claims paid for it, $195K
St. Tammany Parish has had 39 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods.
Old photos of Madisonville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Madisonville archive →Get ready for what Madisonville 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 Madisonville
Does Madisonville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 455 claims in Madisonville since 1985, $21.0M in all. 100 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Hurricane Isaac (155).
Is Madisonville 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. Tammany Parish, 40.4% of all homes carry federal flood insurance.
How much is flood insurance in Madisonville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Madisonville’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 Madisonville?
By FEMA money that reached Madisonville, Hurricane Katrina (2005): 3,281 households applied for aid, $7.4M approved, and $579K to the Town of Madisonville for repairs. By flood claims, Hurricane Isaac: 155 paid, $8.0M.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Madisonville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Madisonville’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.