Vermilion Parish, Louisiana

Parish storm and disaster record · FIPS 22113 · population 57,317 · 1,172 sq mi

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 397 records for Vermilion Parish, Louisiana from 1950 through June 30, 2026, on 319 days; the most frequent are severe thunderstorm wind events (104 records). NOAA records 42 flood or flash floods there since 1997, with 1 death; its 4,799 flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA) rank 97th of 2,942 U.S. counties; the deadliest named storm on its flood record is Hurricane Delta (2020). The deadliest single record is the September 10, 1961 tornado: 1 death and 55 injuries. FEMA has issued 46 declarations naming the county since 1971, 43 of them for natural hazards; the latest for a natural hazard was “Severe Winter Storm” on January 24, 2026.

The record, 1950 to 2026

Storm records filed for the county each year (2026 to June 30, 2026). Before 1996 NOAA recorded only tornadoes (from 1950), thunderstorm wind and hail (from 1955).

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $100,000
  • $100,000 or more
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more, or a death
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
  • 1955: wind and hail recorded from 1955
  • 1996: all 48 event types from 1996
Storm records
397on 319 days, 1950 to June 30, 2026
Deaths recorded
485 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$1.3Bas filed (scale steps before 1993)
Tornadoes
62strongest F3
FEMA declarations
46latest 2026

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026 (file revision 20260918); damage converted to 2025 dollars with the BLS CPI-U. Search the record at NCEI. BLS consumer price index.

What hazards hit Vermilion Parish most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 104 since 1968. The rank column places the county among Louisiana's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Vermilion Parish: records by hazard, 1950 to June 30, 2026
HazardRecordsDaysFirst, lastKilledInjuredDamageRank in state
Severe thunderstorm wind 104 90 1968-2025 0 5 $1.6M 64 of 64
Rip currents and high surf 68 66 2010-2026 0 0 – 2 of 64
Tornadoes 62 51 1959-2025 3 80 $43M 39 of 64
Hail 58 41 1972-2024 0 0 $301K 57 of 64
Floods 42 38 1997-2025 1 0 $189M 49 of 64
Hurricanes and tropical storms 25 23 1998-2024 0 0 $988M 23 of 64
Winter storms 13 12 2004-2025 0 0 $7K 60 of 64
Fog, smoke and funnel clouds 7 7 2009-2022 0 0 – 21 of 64
Lightning 6 6 1997-2021 0 0 $985K 35 of 64
Drought 5 5 1996-2023 0 0 $70M 63 of 64
Heat 4 3 2000-2023 0 0 – 63 of 64
Extreme cold 1 1 2010-2010 0 0 – 62 of 64
Heavy rain 1 1 2009-2009 0 0 – 41 of 64
High wind and dust storms 1 1 2002-2002 0 0 $41K 57 of 64

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Vermilion Parish had?

NOAA records 62 tornadoes in Vermilion Parish from 1959 to 2025, the strongest rated F3, with 3 deaths and 80 injuries recorded in the county. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 62 tornadoes whose track touched Vermilion Parish since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 62, the same count); along their whole tracks they killed 3 people.

The deadliest and strongest tornadoes that touched Vermilion Parish, whole tracks
DateTornadoRatingPathKilled
1983-01-31 21:00, as SPC files itKaplanF36 mi1
1969-12-25 04:30, as SPC files itKaplanF31.5 mi1
1961-09-10 16:50, as SPC files itKaplanF35.7 mi1

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in Louisiana.

Every tornado record filed for Vermilion Parish (62)
The 60 most recent of 62 tornadoes in Vermilion Parish
DatePlaceCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2025-06-10 Meaux, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.01 mi x 1 yd 0 0 $2K
2024-11-05 Indian Bayou, Vermilion Parish EF1 2.62 mi x 300 yd 0 0 $141K
2017-08-29 Haire, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.02 mi x 25 yd 0 0 –
2017-08-27 West Erath, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.21 mi x 25 yd 0 0 $6K
2012-03-21 Grosse Isle, Vermilion Parish EF1 1.18 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $96K
2012-03-21 Bancker, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.9 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $96K
2012-03-21 Gueydan, Vermilion Parish EF2 4.16 mi x 20 yd 0 1 $3.2M
2012-02-18 Gueydan, Vermilion Parish EF0 1.13 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $3K
2009-12-24 Gueydan, Vermilion Parish EF2 5.58 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $1.4M
2009-06-02 Boston, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.1 mi x 25 yd 0 0 –
2008-09-12 Riceville, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.3 mi x 10 yd 0 0 –
2008-05-15 Cow Is, Vermilion Parish EF0 5.55 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $69K
2008-05-15 Leroy, Vermilion Parish EF0 2.26 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $137K
2008-05-15 Gueydan, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.27 mi x 25 yd 0 0 $48K
2007-09-13 Haire, Vermilion Parish EF1 0.25 mi x 25 yd 0 0 $36K
2007-02-13 West Erath, Vermilion Parish EF0 0.46 mi x 25 yd 0 0 $57K
2006-10-16 Gueydan, Vermilion Parish F0 0.25 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $73K
2006-09-21 Delcambre, Vermilion Parish F1 2 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $146K
2006-09-21 Forked Is, Vermilion Parish F0 1 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $7K
2006-09-21 Erath, Vermilion Parish F0 1 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $22K
2006-07-26 Gueydan, Vermilion Parish F0 0.2 mi x 10 yd 0 0 –
2003-02-15 Delcambre, Vermilion Parish F1 0.5 mi x 10 yd 0 1 $201K
2001-10-13 Abbeville, Vermilion Parish F1 0.5 mi x 10 yd 0 0 $125K
1999-03-13 Gueydan, Vermilion Parish F0 0.5 mi x 10 yd 0 0 $177K
1999-01-02 Delcambre, Vermilion Parish F0 1 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $89K
1999-01-02 Perry, Vermilion Parish F0 2 mi x 200 yd 0 0 $89K
1998-09-12 Perry, Vermilion Parish F0 1 mi x 10 yd 0 0 $36K
1997-05-21 Henry, Vermilion Parish F0 1 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $28K
1995-03-07 Abbeville, Vermilion Parish F0 0.3 mi x 20 yd 0 0 –
1995-01-06 Of Abbeville, Vermilion Parish F0 0.2 mi x 20 yd 0 0 –
1992-11-01 Vermilion Parish F1 0.5 mi x 20 yd 0 0 $25K step
1992-06-25 Vermilion Parish F1 5 mi x 30 yd 0 0 $3K step
1992-06-25 Vermilion Parish F1 5 mi x 30 yd 0 0 $3K step
1992-03-05 Vermilion Parish F0 0.1 mi x 13 yd 0 0 –
1991-03-01 Vermilion Parish F1 0.5 mi x 73 yd 0 1 $25K step
1988-05-21 Vermilion Parish F0 0.3 mi x 30 yd 0 0 –
1988-05-21 Vermilion Parish F0 0.3 mi x 330 yd 0 0 $250K step
1987-11-16 Vermilion Parish F0 0.7 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $250K step
1983-11-24 Vermilion Parish F1 0.5 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $250K step
1983-01-31 Vermilion Parish F3 6 mi x 100 yd 1 0 $250K step
1982-05-07 Vermilion Parish F2 5 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $3K step
1977-11-27 Vermilion Parish F0 0.1 mi x 10 yd 0 0 $3K step
1977-11-08 Vermilion Parish F2 1 mi x 27 yd 0 1 $250K step
1977-06-06 Vermilion Parish F1 20.8 mi x 33 yd 0 0 $25K step
1975-01-07 Vermilion Parish F1 0.5 mi x 33 yd 0 1 $25K step
1974-09-08 Vermilion Parish F1 0 1 $3K step
1973-10-31 Vermilion Parish F1 2 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $25K step
1973-09-12 Vermilion Parish F1 4.9 mi x 50 yd 0 4 $25K step
1973-07-23 Vermilion Parish F0 1 mi x 10 yd 0 0 –
1973-04-17 Vermilion Parish F1 0.3 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $3K step
1969-12-25 Vermilion Parish F3 1.5 mi x 100 yd 1 8 $250K step
1967-05-21 Vermilion Parish F1 0.5 mi x 50 yd 0 0 $3K step
1967-05-01 Vermilion Parish F2 2 mi x 50 yd 0 4 $250K step
1966-07-03 Vermilion Parish F1 0.2 mi x 33 yd 0 0 $250 step
1964-08-14 Vermilion Parish F1 6.2 mi x 67 yd 0 0 –
1963-11-05 Vermilion Parish F1 1 mi x 33 yd 0 1 $250 step
1962-09-14 Vermilion Parish F0 1 mi x 33 yd 0 0 –
1961-09-10 Vermilion Parish F1 1 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $25K step
1961-09-10 Vermilion Parish F1 2 mi x 100 yd 0 0 $25K step
1961-09-10 Vermilion Parish F3 5.7 mi x 283 yd 1 55 $2.5M step

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Vermilion Parish?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the October 2, 2025 thunderstorm wind ($2,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

The 12 most recent records kept for Vermilion Parish
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-03-16 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-03-12 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-02-22 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-02-22 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-02-02 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-02-01 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-01-31 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-01-30 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-01-29 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-01-28 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-01-27 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –
2026-01-18 Astronomical Low TideVermilion Parish · forecast zone Lower Vermilion Parish 0 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

Records with deaths or injuries in Vermilion Parish, most deaths first
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1961-09-10 TornadoVermilion Parish F3 5.7 mi x 283 yd 1 55 $2.5M step
1969-12-25 TornadoVermilion Parish F3 1.5 mi x 100 yd 1 8 $250K step
2021-05-17 Flash FloodMaurice, Vermilion Parish Heavy rain produced flooding in northeast Vermilion Parish into the city of Lafayette. Several streets were flooded around the community of Maurice where a driver ran off the road. The motorist was found the next day in the ditch near his car. 1 0 $33K
1983-01-31 TornadoVermilion Parish F3 6 mi x 100 yd 1 0 $250K step
1992-06-01 Thunderstorm WindVermilion Parish 0 4 –
1973-09-12 TornadoVermilion Parish F1 4.9 mi x 50 yd 0 4 $25K step
1967-05-01 TornadoVermilion Parish F2 2 mi x 50 yd 0 4 $250K step
1959-06-14 TornadoVermilion Parish F1 17 mi x 450 yd 0 2 $25K step

A damage figure marked "step" is a record from before 1993: NOAA then filed damage by category, and the figure is the category as entered, in the dollars of that year, not an estimate of the loss.

The costliest records in Vermilion Parish since 1993, damage in 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2020-10-09 Hurricane (Typhoon)Vermilion Parish · forecast zone Vermilion 0 0 $285M
2020-08-26 Hurricane (Typhoon)Vermilion Parish · forecast zone Vermilion 0 0 $228M
2005-09-23 Hurricane (Typhoon)Vermilion Parish · forecast zone Vermilion 0 0 $212M
2002-10-03 Hurricane (Typhoon)Vermilion Parish · forecast zone Vermilion 0 0 $128M
2016-08-14 FloodMaurice, Vermilion Parish 0 0 $92M
2008-09-01 Tropical StormVermilion Parish · forecast zone Vermilion 0 0 $82M
2000-12-01 DroughtVermilion Parish · forecast zone Vermilion 0 0 $61M
2013-01-10 FloodIndian Bayou, Vermilion Parish 0 0 $35M

Before 1993 NOAA filed damage by category, not amount, so the list above starts in 1993. The highest category filed here before then (entered as $2.5M, in the dollars of the day) holds: September 10, 1961 (tornado, Vermilion Parish, 1 killed).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Vermilion Parish's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

Vermilion Parish: records per decade (the 2020s to June 30, 2026)
Hazard1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020-26
Severe thunderstorm wind0171222331910
Rip currents and high surf––––003533
Tornadoes11196121562
Hail00311029114
Floods––––69216
Hurricanes and tropical storms––––4975

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

Records by month in Vermilion Parish. The two busiest months are in violet.

The values, month by month

Jan 46 · Feb 30 · Mar 45 · Apr 39 · May 45 · Jun 43 · Jul 22 · Aug 30 · Sep 30 · Oct 17 · Nov 19 · Dec 31 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Vermilion Parish

FEMA's register lists 46 declarations that include Vermilion Parish: 26 major disasters, 20 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for hurricane (28) and flood (6).

Declarations including Vermilion Parish, newest first
DeclaredNumberTypeTitle
2026-01-24EM-3638Winter StormSevere Winter Storm
2024-09-10EM-3614HurricaneTropical Storm Francine
2021-09-13EM-3574Coastal StormTropical Storm Nicholas
2021-08-29DR-4611HurricaneHurricane Ida
2021-08-27EM-3568HurricaneTropical Storm Ida
2021-03-09DR-4590Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storms
2021-02-18EM-3556Severe Ice StormSevere Winter Storm
2021-01-12DR-4577HurricaneHurricane Zeta
2020-10-27EM-3549HurricaneTropical Storm Zeta
2020-10-16DR-4570HurricaneHurricane Delta
2020-10-07EM-3547HurricaneHurricane Delta
2020-09-14EM-3543HurricaneHurricane Sally
2020-08-28DR-4559HurricaneHurricane Laura
2020-08-23EM-3538HurricaneTropical Storms Laura and Marco
2020-06-07EM-3527Coastal StormTropical Storm Cristobal
2020-03-24DR-4484BiologicalCovid-19 Pandemic
2020-03-13EM-3459BiologicalCovid-19
2019-08-27DR-4458HurricaneHurricane Barry
2019-07-11EM-3416Coastal StormTropical Storm Barry
2017-10-16DR-4345HurricaneTropical Storm Harvey
2017-10-06EM-3392HurricaneTropical Storm Nate
2017-08-28EM-3382HurricaneTropical Storm Harvey
2016-08-14DR-4277FloodSevere Storms and Flooding
2013-02-22DR-4102Severe StormSevere Storms and Flooding
2012-08-29DR-4080HurricaneHurricane Isaac
2008-09-13DR-1792HurricaneHurricane Ike
2008-09-11EM-3295HurricaneHurricane Ike
2008-09-02DR-1786HurricaneHurricane Gustav
2008-08-29EM-3289HurricaneHurricane Gustav
2005-09-24DR-1607HurricaneHurricane Rita
2005-09-21EM-3260HurricaneHurricane Rita
2005-08-29DR-1603HurricaneHurricane Katrina
2005-08-27EM-3212HurricaneHurricane Katrina
2003-02-01EM-3172OtherLoss of Space Shuttle Columbia
2002-10-03DR-1437HurricaneHurricane Lili
2001-06-11DR-1380Coastal StormTropical Storm Allison
1998-09-23DR-1246HurricaneHurricane Georges/Ts Frances
1993-02-02DR-978FloodSevere Storms & Flooding
1992-08-26DR-956HurricaneHurricane Andrew
1989-07-17DR-835FloodTropical Storm Allison

The 40 most recent of 46 are listed; the CSV has every one.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

How many floods has Vermilion Parish had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 42 flood or flash flood records for Vermilion Parish from 1997 to 2025, on 38 days, with 1 death. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Vermilion Parish ranks 97th of 2,942 U.S. counties. The 100 counties with the most claims

Named storms on Vermilion Parish's flood and tropical record
StormBeganRecordsDeaths in the county
Hurricane Delta2020-10-0910
Hurricane Laura2020-08-2610
Tropical Storm Barry2019-07-1320
Hurricane Gustav2008-09-0120
Hurricane Rita2005-09-2310
Hurricane Lili2002-10-0310
Tropical Storm Allison2001-06-0610
Hurricane Georges1998-09-0910

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $187 million on 4,799 claims filed in Vermilion Parish; the most in one year was 1,564 in 2005. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

The values, year by year

1978: 25 · 1979: 22 · 1980: 52 · 1981: 3 · 1982: 5 · 1983: 6 · 1984: 159 · 1985: 35 · 1987: 1 · 1988: 6 · 1989: 24 · 1990: 9 · 1991: 43 · 1992: 6 · 1993: 22 · 1995: 55 · 1996: 4 · 1997: 14 · 1998: 30 · 1999: 31 · 2000: 2 · 2001: 246 · 2002: 74 · 2003: 5 · 2004: 6 · 2005: 1,564 · 2006: 24 · 2007: 19 · 2008: 1,072 · 2009: 3 · 2010: 11 · 2011: 4 · 2012: 1 · 2013: 47 · 2014: 2 · 2015: 12 · 2016: 963 · 2017: 10 · 2018: 14 · 2019: 8 · 2020: 138 · 2021: 12 · 2023: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2025: 8; the other years: 0.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Vermilion Parish

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Vermilion Parish Relatively Moderate overall, with an expected annual loss of $44.3 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

National Risk Index ratings for Vermilion Parish (December 2025 release), by FEMA's rating, then score
HazardRisk ratingExpected annual lossModeled frequency
DroughtRelatively High$3.3M27 modeled event-days a year
HurricaneRelatively High$19Monce in about 6 years (modeled)
LightningRelatively High$1.0M86 a year (modeled)
Riverine FloodingRelatively Moderate$15Mabout once a year (modeled)
Cold WaveRelatively Moderate$2.5M1.1 a year (modeled)
Coastal FloodingRelatively Moderate$705K4.8 a year (modeled)
Ice StormRelatively Moderate$131Konce in about 3 years (modeled)
Heat WaveRelatively Low$1.0M9.8 modeled event-days a year

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Vermilion Parish

  1. Cameron Parish 570
  2. Acadia Parish 414
  3. Vermilion Parish 397
  4. Lafayette Parish 391
  5. Jefferson Davis Parish 325
  6. Iberia Parish 297

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

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