Little Texas · Photo: Z28scrambler · CC BY-SA 3.0More hazard damage per building is expected in Paulina than in 96% of U.S. towns, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Paulina gets a D− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (70%), then river and rain flooding (16%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.
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 Paulina’s natural hazards
From FEMA’s model and FEMA’s records, below.
What Paulina 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 Paulina’s grade
Hurricanes are 70% of the building damage FEMA expects in Paulina, and Paulina’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 10%, at a rate in the top 1% of U.S. census tracts.
D− higher expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Paulina’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 Paulina: $1.6M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Paulina flood? No paid flood claims on record
FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Paulina. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.
Paulina 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. James Parish.6 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Paulina
Disasters that paid out in Paulina itself (aid to households or repair grants to Paulina), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Francine198 households applied for aid$492K aid approved
- 2021Hurricane Ida1,249 households applied for aid$2.0M aid approved
- 2016Severe Storms and Flooding32 households applied for aid$26K aid approved
- 2012Hurricane Isaac196 households applied for aid$189K aid approved
- 2008Hurricane Gustav434 households applied for aid$406K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Katrina567 households applied for aid$508K aid approved
St. James Parish has had 32 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods.
Old photos of Paulina after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Paulina archive →Paulina and its neighbors
Paulina is 4th of the 4 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Vacherie | Dmore damage than 94% | hurricanes | 16 |
| Lutcher | Dmore damage than 94% | hurricanes | 50 |
| Grand Point | D−more damage than 96% | hurricanes | — |
| Paulina | D−more damage than 96% | hurricanes | 0 |
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 Paulina 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 Paulina
Is Paulina at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Paulina has higher expected damage per building than 96% of U.S. towns: D− for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (70%) and river and rain flooding (16%). 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.
Is Paulina 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. James Parish, 31% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 11.3% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Paulina?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Paulina’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 Paulina?
By FEMA money that reached Paulina, Hurricane Ida (2021): 1,249 households applied for aid, $2.0M approved.
Is Paulina at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (70%), and Paulina’s rate for it is in the top 2% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Paulina.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Paulina’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.