Flood zones, flood insurance and FEMA help, in plain English

St. Bernard Parish flood history

Louisiana · From FEMA's flood insurance and disaster data · Updated 2026-10-08

23,919NFIP flood claims since 1978
$2.2 billionPaid on those claims
$22,078Average paid claimlast 10 years
56.8%Homes with NFIP flood insurance
$1,090Typical yearly NFIP costsingle-family home
2Flood disaster declarationssince 2000

FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) data lists 23,919 flood insurance claims in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana since 1978. The NFIP paid $2.2 billion on them (building, contents and Increased Cost of Compliance payments, in the dollars of the year paid).

The year with the most claims was 2005, with 16,719, mostly from Hurricane Katrina.

In the last ten years (2017–2026) there were 281 claims, and the average paid claim was $22,078.

45% of the claims with a recorded flood zone came from buildings outside FEMA's high-risk zones (rated zones B, C and X).

About 56.8% of homes in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana had an NFIP flood policy in FEMA's latest count (8,351 of 14,712 residential buildings).

Since 2000, FEMA has made 2 flood-related disaster declarations covering St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana. The most recent was DR-1792-LA (Hurricane Ike), declared September 13, 2008.

NFIP claims by year

NFIP flood claims per year in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana05k10k15k20k1978: 1,276 claims, $10.0 million paid1979: 42 claims, $56,093 paid1980: 1,082 claims, $6.5 million paid19801981: 15 claims, $10,603 paid1982: 280 claims, $705,202 paid1983: 818 claims, $5.5 million paid1984: 7 claims, $6,373 paid1985: 221 claims, $1.7 million paid1986: 2 claims, $2,421 paid1987: 3 claims, $0 paid1988: 110 claims, $164,613 paid1989: 91 claims, $293,237 paid1990: 148 claims, $528,377 paid19901991: 34 claims, $73,196 paid1992: 61 claims, $229,245 paid1993: 12 claims, $5,697 paid1994: 21 claims, $36,022 paid1995: 728 claims, $4.6 million paid1996: 64 claims, $387,247 paid1997: 100 claims, $282,968 paid1998: 355 claims, $2.7 million paid1999: 12 claims, $16,101 paid2000: 14 claims, $16,699 paid20002001: 170 claims, $510,683 paid2002: 504 claims, $3.2 million paid2003: 63 claims, $175,912 paid2004: 73 claims, $519,531 paid2005: 16,719 claims, $2.2 billion paid2006: 5 claims, $52,924 paid2007: 4 claims, $55,790 paid2008: 121 claims, $754,530 paid2009: 31 claims, $186,557 paid2010: 1 claims, $0 paid20102011: 30 claims, $197,589 paid2012: 394 claims, $3.2 million paid2013: 11 claims, $35,199 paid2014: 6 claims, $16,851 paid2015: 6 claims, $0 paid2016: 4 claims, $0 paid2017: 6 claims, $9,586 paid2018: 6 claims, $32,449 paid2019: 22 claims, $285,753 paid2020: 37 claims, $116,699 paid20202021: 179 claims, $1.6 million paid2022: 8 claims, $0 paid2023: 5 claims, $38,264 paid2024: 13 claims, $48,577 paid2025: 5 claims, $312,519 paid
Claims per year of loss. Hover or tap a bar for details.
Show as a table
YearClaimsPaid
20255$312,519
202413$48,577
20235$38,264
20228$0
2021179$1.6 million
202037$116,699
201922$285,753
20186$32,449
20176$9,586
20164$0
20156$0
20146$16,851
201311$35,199
2012394$3.2 million
201130$197,589
20101$0
200931$186,557
2008121$754,530
20074$55,790
20065$52,924
200516,719$2.2 billion
200473$519,531
200363$175,912
2002504$3.2 million
2001170$510,683
200014$16,699
199912$16,101
1998355$2.7 million
1997100$282,968
199664$387,247
1995728$4.6 million
199421$36,022
199312$5,697
199261$229,245
199134$73,196
1990148$528,377
198991$293,237
1988110$164,613
19873$0
19862$2,421
1985221$1.7 million
19847$6,373
1983818$5.5 million
1982280$705,202
198115$10,603
19801,082$6.5 million
197942$56,093
19781,276$10.0 million

Named flood events

EventYearClaimsPaid
Hurricane Katrina200515,984$2.2 billion
Flooding19781,261$9.9 million
Hurricane Rita2005576$9.2 million
Flooding19801,069$6.4 million
Flooding1983682$5.2 million
Flooding1995725$4.6 million
Hurricane Isaac2012379$3.1 million
Tropical Storm Isidore2002389$2.8 million

How many homes have flood insurance

FEMA counts 8,351 residential NFIP policies in St. Bernard Parish, against 14,712 residential buildings (56.8%). Of the 1,922 residential buildings in high-risk flood zones (Special Flood Hazard Areas), 2,185 have an NFIP policy (114%). Private flood policies aren't in these counts.

Whether you're required to carry flood insurance depends on your flood zone and your mortgage. See do I need flood insurance?

What flood insurance costs in St. Bernard Parish

On June 30, 2026, 9,156 NFIP flood insurance policies were in force in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana. For the 7,514 single-family homes among them, the typical (median) yearly cost was about $1,090; the average was $1,140.

Rated flood zonePoliciesTypical yearly cost, single-family homeAverage costAverage building coverage
High-risk zones (A and V)2,385$1,210$1,290$216,000
Moderate- and low-risk zones (B, C and X)6,770$1,090$1,090$227,000

Cost here is what FEMA's data lists as the policy cost: the premium plus the reserve fund assessment, federal policy fee and HFIAA surcharge. It covers single-family homes only (not condos, apartments or businesses), with costs rounded to the nearest $10 and shown only where at least 20 homes back the figure. Your own price depends on your building and the coverage you choose; see how flood insurance is priced. Private flood insurance isn't included.

Flood-related disaster declarations

DeclarationDeclaredEventHelp for individuals
DR-1792-LA Sep 13, 2008 Hurricane Ike Yes
DR-1786-LA Sep 2, 2008 Hurricane Gustav Yes

Check your own address

County numbers can't tell you about a single building. Look up your property on FEMA's flood map, then read what your flood zone means. More counties: all of Louisiana.

Where these numbers come from

All figures on this page are calculated from FEMA's public OpenFEMA datasets:

FEMA's redacted claims data doesn't identify properties, and FEMA notes that some records lack a county or flood zone. See how we use the data.