St. Mary Parish, Louisiana severe weather history spans 192 recorded events between 1952 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 45.3% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,486 nationally and #53 in Louisiana.
192
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
31
Direct injuries
$40.9M
Property damage
The record
What the St. Mary Parish, Louisiana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, St. Mary Parish, Louisiana severe weather history averages 2.6 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 52 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 33 events fall before 1990 and 159 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is flood, with $25.0M 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 St. Mary Parish
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 87 | 0 | $7.7M | 89 | 1969–2024 |
| Hail | 39 | 0 | $201K | 2.5 | 1974–2024 |
| Tornado | 24 | 0 | $3.7M | F3 | 1952–2018 |
| Flash Flood | 22 | 0 | $3.7M | 0 | 1997–2024 |
| Lightning | 10 | 0 | $615K | 0 | 1998–2025 |
| Flood | 6 | 0 | $25.0M | 0 | 1996–2016 |
| Heavy Rain | 3 | 0 | $15K | 0 | 2009–2012 |
| Funnel Cloud | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2009–2009 |
Decade by decade
St. Mary Parish, Louisiana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
25 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 25 touched down inside it and 0 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970-03-17 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-09-16 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-09-10 | EF2 | 0 | 16 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1952-04-04 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 6.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2016-02-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2000-06-16 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-01-02 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-04-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-05-12 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-05-08 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in St. Mary Parish
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 11, 1961 | Tornado | 0 | 16 | $25K | |
| May 21, 1985 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 3 | $0 | |
| Apr 4, 1952 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $2.5M | |
| Mar 26, 1974 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $3K | |
| Mar 17, 1970 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $250K | |
| Aug 3, 1999 | Lightning | MORGAN CITY | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 3, 1999 | Lightning | LOUISA | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jan 2, 1999 | Tornado | PATTERSON | 0 | 1 | $75K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Flooding along Bayou Teche occurred from around Breaux Bridge southward into Saint Mary Parish. In Saint Mary Parish flooding was mainly confined to the northwest section of the parish along the bayou. Some roadways and structures remained flooded for multiple days as the water slowly drained toward the gulf and the Atchafalaya River.
A weak tornado briefly touched down near the Plantation Hotel, uplifting a large section of the roof and breaking multiple room windows. The tornado continued southeast across US 90 into the marsh and dissipated. The max estimated wind speed was 80 MPH.
St. Mary Parish Emergency Manager reported 25 homes flooded in and around Baldwin. Portions of Franklin High School were flooded with up to 4 inches of water, including the Franklin Adult Learning Center and Vocational-Technical buildings, according to the Morgan City Daily Review. Lafayette Daily Advertiser also reported the new Rain Tree Elementary School in Charenton was completely surrounded by flood waters, causing plumbing problems to the building and forcing the cancellation of school for the day.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Moderate
FEMA NRI risk rating
47,828
Population (ACS)
$139K
Median home value
49
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 27, 2023 | Other | SEAWATER INTRUSION | EM |
| Sep 13, 2021 | Coastal Storm | TROPICAL STORM NICHOLAS | EM |
| Aug 29, 2021 | Hurricane | HURRICANE IDA | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in St. Mary Parish, Louisiana?
192 events are on record between 1952 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $40.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in St. Mary Parish?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 87 recorded events — 45.3% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed St. Mary Parish?
25 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 25 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover St. Mary Parish?
49 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include St. Mary Parish, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is St. Mary Parish compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates St. Mary Parish as relatively moderate risk, placing it in the 89 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the St. Mary 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. Martin Parish 187
- St. Tammany Parish 715
- St. Landry Parish 407
- Tangipahoa Parish 488
- St. John the Baptist Parish 97
- Tensas Parish 313
Cite this page
“St. Mary Parish, Louisiana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/louisiana/st-mary-parish/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.