Photo: Z28scrambler · CC BY-SA 3.0Storms, floods and disasters in Springfield
Springfield isn’t graded for hazard risk: Springfield has 382 residents; we grade towns of 1,000 or more. Flood insurance has paid 13 claims here since 2002.
What Springfield 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 Springfield flood? Sometimes: 13 flood claims since 2002
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Springfield, from FEMA’s records.
- The Mid-summer severe storms5 claims · $637K
- Hurricane Isaac3 claims · $43K
- The Late winter severe storms1 claim · $10K
Springfield isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Livingston Parish.12 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Springfield
Disasters that paid out in Springfield itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Town of Springfield), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Hurricane Francine$9K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
- 2021Hurricane Ida2,189 households applied for aid$5.7M aid approved$79K to the Town of Springfield for repairs1 flood claim paid for it, $31K
- 2019Hurricane Barry$3K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
- 2017Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Straight-line Winds9 households applied for aid$30K aid approved
- 2016Severe Storms and Flooding1,351 households applied for aid$8.4M aid approved$47K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
- 2016Severe Storms and Flooding172 households applied for aid$316K aid approved$7K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
Show all 12
- 2012Hurricane Isaac883 households applied for aid$1.9M aid approved$8K to the Town of Springfield for repairs3 flood claims paid for it, $43K
- 2008Hurricane Ike158 households applied for aid$821K aid approved
- 2008Hurricane Gustav734 households applied for aid$783K aid approved$34K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
- 2005Hurricane Rita266 households applied for aid$243K aid approved
- 2005Hurricane Katrina1,890 households applied for aid$2.8M aid approved$17K to the Town of Springfield for repairs
- 2004Severe Storms and Flooding106 households applied for aid$35K aid approved1 flood claim paid that year
Livingston Parish has had 40 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then floods.
Old photos of Springfield after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Springfield archive →Get ready for what Springfield 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 Springfield
Does Springfield flood?
Flood insurance has paid 13 claims in Springfield since 2002, $738K in all. 2 properties have flooded more than once. The most claims came from Mid-summer severe storms (5).
Is Springfield 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 Livingston Parish, 39% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 26.6% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Springfield?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Springfield’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 Springfield?
By FEMA money that reached Springfield, Severe Storms and Flooding (2016): 1,351 households applied for aid, $8.4M approved, and $47K to the Town of Springfield for repairs. By flood claims, Mid-summer severe storms: 5 paid, $637K.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Springfield.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Springfield’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.