Ouachita Parish, Louisiana severe weather history spans 812 recorded events between 1951 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 46.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #281 nationally and #4 in Louisiana.
812
Recorded events
7
Direct deaths
26
Direct injuries
$316.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Ouachita Parish, Louisiana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Ouachita Parish, Louisiana severe weather history averages 10.8 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 209 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 156 events fall before 1990 and 656 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Ouachita Parish, Louisiana record is flash flood, responsible for 4 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $262.2M 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 Ouachita Parish
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 378 | 2 | $9.2M | 100 | 1957–2026 |
| Hail | 255 | 0 | $2K | 4 | 1959–2026 |
| Flash Flood | 106 | 4 | $41.8M | 0 | 1999–2025 |
| Tornado | 47 | 0 | $262.2M | F4 | 1951–2022 |
| Flood | 12 | 1 | $3.0M | 0 | 2009–2019 |
| Lightning | 10 | 0 | $560K | 0 | 2000–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2006–2018 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2010–2011 |
Decade by decade
Ouachita Parish, Louisiana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
51 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 39 touched down inside it and 12 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983-04-01 | EF4 | 2 | 20 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-04-12 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 8.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-04-12 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 2.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-02-01 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1953-03-22 | EF2 | 2 | 22 | 234.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2014-10-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 9.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2009-04-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 12.6 mi | Crossed in |
| 1986-03-18 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 5.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1983-12-02 | EF2 | 0 | 10 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1954-04-30 | EF2 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Ouachita Parish
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 10, 1990 | Thunderstorm Wind | 1 | 1 | $0 | |
| Apr 14, 2019 | Flood | FOLKSVILLE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Apr 13, 2019 | Flash Flood | BAWCOMVILLE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Mar 10, 2016 | Flash Flood | FOLKSVILLE | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Apr 27, 2011 | Flash Flood | MONROE | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Apr 27, 2011 | Flash Flood | MONROE | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Jul 7, 1987 | Thunderstorm Wind | 1 | 0 | $0 | |
| Dec 3, 1983 | Tornado | 0 | 10 | $2.5M |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
An 80 year old female drove past barricades on Golson Rd. south of I-20 in Calhoun. The road had residual flooding from previous flash flooding earlier in the day. The vehicle became submerged by the flood waters, and the driver was unable to escape and drowned.
Excessive heavy rainfall from the remnants of Hurricane Gustav resulted in high water across portions of Ouachita Parish. The hardest hit areas were areas to the southwest and south of Monroe, Louisiana, particularly in the Brownsville-Bawcomville Community. Roads were inundated in the community with water reported in several homes. Some homes were flooded was reported included White Columns Street, Oregon Trail, Gourd Bayou Road, Oliver Road and most of the Tanglewood Drive Subdivision. A three day storm total rainfall of over 8 to 10 inches was common across much of Ouachita Parish from the remnants of Hurricane Gustav. Emergency Management reported that the National Guard was called into evacuate people from their homes in the Tanglewood Subdivision. Approximately 64 people were put into shelters due to flooding. 160 homes had to be evacuated due to serious flooding in the Monroe area.
A squall line pushed through Ouachita Parish during the evening toppling trees and power lines. Many homes suffered wind damage and roads were blocked by trees. Several people were trapped inside their cars by downed power lines. Over 200 telephone poles were snapped leaving 45,000 people without power. The damage area was nearly 180 square miles which covered much of the southern half of the Parish. In the city and surrounding communities over 400 homes suffered some sort of structural damage. The damage was so severe that Ouachita Parish was put under a declaration of emergency by the governor of Louisiana. The State Department of transportation and Development donated several trucks to help with the clean-up.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
158,480
Population (ACS)
$194K
Median home value
44
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 18, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | DR |
| 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 |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Monroe 140
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana?
812 events are on record between 1951 and 2026, causing 7 direct deaths and $316.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Ouachita Parish?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 378 recorded events — 46.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Ouachita Parish?
51 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 39 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Ouachita Parish?
44 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Ouachita Parish, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Ouachita Parish compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Ouachita Parish as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 88 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Ouachita 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
- Orleans Parish 472
- Plaquemines Parish 172
- Natchitoches Parish 710
- Pointe Coupee Parish 214
- Morehouse Parish 508
- Rapides Parish 662
Cite this page
“Ouachita Parish, Louisiana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/louisiana/ouachita-parish/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.