Burks House · Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0Storms, floods and disasters in Merryville
Merryville isn’t graded for hazard risk: FEMA’s tract figures aren’t matched to Merryville yet. Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 1982.
What Merryville faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
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. 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 Merryville flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 1982
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Merryville, from FEMA’s records.
- Tropical Storm Allison2 claims · $90K
- Hurricane Rita1 claim · $24K
Merryville isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Beauregard Parish.8 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Merryville
Disasters that paid out in Merryville itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Merryville), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2020Hurricane Delta76 households applied for aid$74K aid approved
- 2020Hurricane Laura820 households applied for aid$961K aid approved$126K to the Town of Merryville for repairs
- 2017Tropical Storm Harvey$44K to the Town of Merryville for repairs
- 2016Severe Storms and Flooding216 households applied for aid$1.4M aid approved$8K to the Town of Merryville for repairs
- 2008Hurricane Ike124 households applied for aid$62K aid approved$16K to the Town of Merryville for repairs
- 2008Hurricane Gustav59 households applied for aid$11K aid approved
Show all 8
- 2005Hurricane Rita1,394 households applied for aid$1.9M aid approved$23K to the Town of Merryville for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $24K
- 2001Tropical Storm Allison$21K to the Town of Merryville for repairs2 flood claims paid for it, $90K
Beauregard Parish has had 30 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods.
Also 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Beauregard Parish, 2000–2023.
Old photos of Merryville after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Merryville archive →Get ready for what Merryville faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- 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.
- 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 Merryville
Does Merryville flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Merryville since 1982, $119K in all. The most claims came from Tropical Storm Allison (2).
Is Merryville 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 Beauregard Parish, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.9% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Merryville?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Merryville’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 Merryville?
By FEMA money that reached Merryville, Hurricane Rita (2005): 1,394 households applied for aid, $1.9M approved, and $23K to the Town of Merryville for repairs. By flood claims, Tropical Storm Allison: 2 paid, $90K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Merryville.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Merryville’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.