St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana severe weather history spans 97 recorded events between 1957 and 2024. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 52.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,892 nationally and #62 in Louisiana.
97
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
83
Direct injuries
$63.2M
Property damage
The record
What the St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana severe weather history averages 1.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 23 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 19 events fall before 1990 and 78 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana record is tornado, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $52.4M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in St. John the Baptist Parish
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 51 | 0 | $288K | 65 | 1960–2023 |
| Tornado | 20 | 2 | $52.4M | F4 | 1957–2018 |
| Flash Flood | 11 | 0 | $10.6M | 0 | 1999–2024 |
| Hail | 7 | 0 | $0 | 1.75 | 1987–2015 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2007–2021 |
| Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–1998 |
| Lightning | 1 | 1 | $0 | 0 | 1998–1998 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2004 |
| Storm Surge/Tide | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1998–1998 |
Decade by decade
St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
24 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 23 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983-12-06 | EF4 | 0 | 25 | 7.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-08-25 | EF3 | 2 | 32 | 9.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-02-23 | EF2 | 0 | 17 | 4.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-11-22 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-02-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2015-12-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-05-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-06-30 | EF1 | 0 | 4 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1987-02-15 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1980-05-19 | EF1 | 0 | 2 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in St. John the Baptist Parish
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 26, 1992 | Tornado | 2 | 32 | $25.0M | |
| Jun 23, 1998 | Lightning | EDGARD | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Dec 6, 1983 | Tornado | 0 | 25 | $25.0M | |
| Feb 23, 2016 | Tornado | MONTEGUT | 0 | 17 | $0 |
| Jun 30, 2003 | Tornado | RESERVE | 0 | 4 | $2.0M |
| Nov 23, 1961 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $25K | |
| May 19, 1980 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The greater impact was from Francine���s flooding rain, though. As the north and northeastern eyewall stretched into an east-west oriented band of heavy rainfall, training storms resulted in widespread rainfall totals of 4-7��� across the parish with locally higher amounts, much of which fell over the course of just a couple hours. The heavy rain resulted in significant flash flooding, with numerous roads becoming impassable (including the I-10 exit/entrance near Laplace). Some homes also flooded with up to 18��� of water.
A tornado touched down briefly near Reserve striking a private high school and a mobile home park. Several buildings at the private school were damaged including on classroom building where one half of the building was completely demolished. Around 20 trailers were heavy damaged or destroyed. One mobile home was lifted into the air and deposited 30 yards away. One woman and three children inside the mobile home were injured, but fortunately not seriously. There were several eyewitnesses to the short lived tornado episode.
A tree fell on a home on Chatsworth Drive in Laplace. Another tree was blown into the street in the 1900 block of Williamsburg Drive. Power lines fell into a tree and caught it on fire in the 2000 block of Yorktowne Drive. Time of event was estimated based on radar.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
40,743
Population (ACS)
$193K
Median home value
46
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2026 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM | EM |
| Sep 16, 2024 | Hurricane | HURRICANE FRANCINE | DR |
| 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 |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana?
97 events are on record between 1957 and 2024, causing 3 direct deaths and $63.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in St. John the Baptist Parish?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 51 recorded events — 52.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed St. John the Baptist Parish?
24 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 23 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover St. John the Baptist Parish?
46 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include St. John the Baptist Parish, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is St. John the Baptist Parish compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates St. John the Baptist Parish as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 82 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the St. John the Baptist 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
- St. James Parish 88
- St. Landry Parish 407
- St. Helena Parish 115
- St. Martin Parish 187
- St. Charles Parish 258
- St. Mary Parish 192
Cite this page
“St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/louisiana/st-john-the-baptist-parish/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.