Acadia Parish, Louisiana severe weather history spans 370 recorded events between 1952 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 45.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,388 nationally and #27 in Louisiana.
370
Recorded events
7
Direct deaths
120
Direct injuries
$347.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Acadia Parish, Louisiana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Acadia Parish, Louisiana severe weather history averages 5.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 92 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 73 events fall before 1990 and 297 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Acadia Parish, Louisiana record is tornado, responsible for 7 direct deaths. The costliest is flood, with $240.4M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Acadia Parish
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 167 | 0 | $1.7M | 100 | 1957–2026 |
| Tornado | 90 | 7 | $59.4M | F3 | 1952–2026 |
| Hail | 64 | 0 | $0 | 2 | 1965–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 28 | 0 | $46.1M | 0 | 1996–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2021 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $63K | 0 | 1998–2020 |
| Flood | 5 | 0 | $240.4M | 0 | 1997–2016 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2019 |
Decade by decade
Acadia Parish, Louisiana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
95 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 85 touched down inside it and 10 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957-11-07 | EF3 | 4 | 10 | 9.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-10-29 | EF3 | 2 | 52 | 31.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 2020-05-17 | EF3 | 1 | 9 | 3.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-02-09 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-02-09 | EF3 | 0 | 7 | 21.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-04-04 | EF3 | 0 | 10 | 36.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2002-10-29 | EF2 | 2 | 3 | 10.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-03-05 | EF2 | 1 | 11 | 7.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-08-29 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-12-24 | EF2 | 0 | 4 | 6.6 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Acadia Parish
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 29, 1974 | Tornado | 2 | 40 | $25.0M | |
| Nov 8, 1957 | Tornado | 2 | 5 | $250K | |
| Mar 5, 2011 | Tornado | RAYNE | 1 | 11 | $15.0M |
| May 18, 2020 | Tornado | RICHARD | 1 | 9 | $500K |
| Jan 10, 1975 | Tornado | 1 | 8 | $25K | |
| Apr 18, 2019 | Flash Flood | CROWLEY | 0 | 10 | $0 |
| Feb 15, 1990 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $250K | |
| Dec 24, 2009 | Tornado | CROWLEY | 0 | 4 | $4.0M |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
An EF-3 tornado was documented in parts of Acadia and St. Landry Parishes. It began near Gobert Rd and Pitreville Hwy, and crossed Grand Marais Rd, Prudence Hwy, St. Margaret Rd, Lawtell Hwy, and N Beaugh St. One home was picked up off its pilings and thrown 50 yards to its south, destroying the home. Three people were inside. One person was killed, and the other two people are hospitalized with significant injuries. Nearby, 4 mobile homes were destroyed. Two were flipped in the air and seperated from the frame, another one rolled over on top of an SUV, and the fourth was|pulled off its blocks and had significant structural damage. Two grain dryers were destroyed at a farm, and an 18 wheeler used to transport crops was picked up and flipped onto the road. The tornado ended on the city limits of Church Point|where a large tree fell on a home. The max estimated wind speed was 150 mph.
Heavy rain fell on the 12th, 13th, and 14th and gradually drained into the Mermentau River. Interstate 10 became closed as the river flowed across the roadway from the end of the flash flood event on the 14th through the next few days while the river crested. At the town of Mermentau the river crested at 10.8 feet which was the 5th highest recorded crest. Flood stage is 4 feet. Many roadways and homes stayed flooded for multiple days as the water slowly drained after the flash flood event.
The Acadia Parish Emergency Manager first reported flooding along a few streets in Eunice during the evening of the 12th. Periods of heavy rain continued for another day with 6 to 10 inches of rainfall reported across much of the parish. An estimated 3,936 structures flooded during the event from either flash flooding or river flooding.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
56,955
Population (ACS)
$156K
Median home value
42
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 10, 2024 | Hurricane | TROPICAL STORM FRANCINE | EM |
| Sep 13, 2021 | Coastal Storm | TROPICAL STORM NICHOLAS | EM |
| Aug 29, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | DR |
| Aug 27, 2021 | Hurricane | TROPICAL STORM IDA | EM |
| Mar 9, 2021 | Severe Ice Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Acadia Parish, Louisiana?
370 events are on record between 1952 and 2026, causing 7 direct deaths and $347.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Acadia Parish?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 167 recorded events — 45.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Acadia Parish?
95 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 85 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Acadia Parish?
42 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Acadia Parish, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Acadia Parish compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Acadia Parish as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 89 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Acadia Parish, Louisiana severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Allen Parish 295
- Ascension Parish 202
- Assumption Parish 89
- Avoyelles Parish 315
- Beauregard Parish 448
- Bienville Parish 484
Cite this page
“Acadia Parish, Louisiana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/louisiana/acadia-parish/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.