Home Hurricane and flood season
Lafayette hurricane and flood season: moving and tie-downs
If you can, schedule a Lafayette mobile home move outside August through October: 9 of the 10 tropical storm and hurricane records NOAA lists for Lafayette Parish since 1996 fell in those months. A home is at its most exposed between lots, when it’s off its piers and not tied down. This page uses NOAA’s storm records for Lafayette Parish since 1996 to show when floods and tropical storms have hit. It also covers the anchoring rules a home has to meet once it’s set.
Hurricane season
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. The National Hurricane Center puts the peak on September 10, with most activity between mid-August and mid-October. An average season, based on 1991 to 2020, has 14 named storms, 7 hurricanes and 3 major hurricanes (National Hurricane Center, tropical cyclone climatology).
NOAA’s Storm Events Database has 10 tropical storm and hurricane records for Lafayette Parish from 1996 on. 9 of them came in August, September or October, and 4 in September alone. None came before July.
Tropical storm and hurricane records for the Lafayette forecast zone by month, 1996 to 2026. From the NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
| Date | Storm | Logged as | Property damage listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 9, 1998 | Frances | Tropical storm conditions | $1 million |
| October 3, 2002 | Lili | Hurricane conditions | $80 million |
| September 23, 2005 | Rita | Hurricane conditions | $8 million |
| September 1, 2008 | Gustav | Hurricane conditions | $100 million |
| September 3, 2011 | Lee | Tropical storm conditions | $20,000 |
| August 28, 2012 | Isaac | Tropical storm conditions | $5,000 |
| July 13, 2019 | Barry | Tropical storm conditions | $25,000 |
| August 26, 2020 | Laura | Tropical storm conditions | $80 million |
| October 9, 2020 | Delta | Hurricane conditions | $300 million |
| August 29, 2021 | Ida | Tropical storm conditions | $500,000 |
Damage is in the dollars of that year, as NOAA lists it for the Lafayette zone. Storm names are from NOAA’s episode notes.
The biggest damage figure in those records is $300 million for Hurricane Delta in 2020. Delta came ashore in October 2020, six weeks after Laura, near where Laura had. In the Lafayette records, Gustav in 2008 is the only one with a death: a man killed when a tree fell through his roof.
Flood season isn’t the same as hurricane season
Floods follow a different calendar here. NOAA logs 66 flood, flash flood and heavy rain records for Lafayette Parish on 64 different days since 1996. The busiest month is May, with 16 days, then June with 11. May and June together account for 27 of the 64. July through November, the heart of hurricane season, has 17.
Days with a flood, flash flood or heavy rain record in Lafayette Parish by month, 1996 to 2026. From the NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The worst flood in the records wasn’t a named storm. In August 2016, a flash flood starting on the 12th and river flooding from the 14th are listed at $1.1 billion combined. NOAA’s notes say the Vermilion River stayed in major flood through the 24th or 25th and kept some neighborhoods underwater for a couple of weeks.
| Date | Type | Property damage listed |
|---|---|---|
| August 14, 2016 | Flood | $700 million |
| August 12, 2016 | Flash Flood | $400 million |
| March 12, 2012 | Flash Flood | $164 million |
| January 9, 2013 | Flash Flood | $22.5 million |
| June 6, 2001 | Flash Flood | $5 million |
The five flood records with the highest damage figures. NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
Planning a move around the weather
- DOTD won’t let a permitted load travel in heavy rain, heavy fog or other low visibility, and it names a mobile home in wind as an example of a load that may be a hazard (Louisiana DOTD, Regulations for Trucks, Vehicles and Loads (2026)). Leave some slack around the move date.
- The trip permit lasts 72 hours with no extensions (Louisiana DOTD, Regulations for Trucks, Vehicles and Loads (2026)). A move that slips past that needs a new permit.
- Breakdown, transport and setup together take about a week, according to LocalMovers.com (LocalMovers.com, the mobile home moving process). The home isn’t tied down while it’s between lots.
- An NFIP flood policy usually takes 30 days to start, with some exceptions such as a policy bought with a new loan (FloodSmart (NFIP), buying a flood policy; 44 CFR 61.11, effective date of a flood policy). If the new lot needs flood cover, buy it well before the move.
- Check whether the new lot is in a flood zone before you book. The permits page covers Lafayette’s floodplain permit and elevation rules.
Tie-downs in Lafayette: Wind Zone II
HUD’s wind zone map puts Lafayette Parish in Wind Zone II, along with Acadia, Iberia, St. Landry, St. Martin and Vermilion (24 CFR 3280.305, HUD wind zone map). Zone II homes are designed for a 100 mph wind speed under that rule. Every HUD-code home has a data plate, fixed near the main electrical panel or another easy-to-see spot, that shows the wind zone it was built for (24 CFR 3280.5, the data plate).
Federal installation rules say the anchoring has to hold the loads shown on the data plate. A home can use lighter anchoring only when it goes into a less demanding zone than it was built for (24 CFR 3285.401, anchoring). If you’re buying a used home from north Louisiana or out of state to bring here, check that its data plate says Zone II or III before you pay to move it, and ask the installer about it.
Louisiana’s anchoring rules for used homes
For a new home, the installer follows the manufacturer’s instructions. For a used home without them, state law sets the minimums (Louisiana manufactured home installation and transportation law (R.S. 51:912.21 and following)):
| Item | Rule (Zone II figures where zones differ) |
|---|---|
| Anchors | Listed for 4,725 pounds ultimate load. Auger anchors at least 30 inches long, set at least 30 inches into undisturbed or compacted soil. |
| Frame ties | Every 8 feet, with an anchor within 2 feet of each end. Each tie wraps the frame at least once and attaches to a main I-beam. |
| Side wall ties | Vertical and diagonal ties with stabilizers at each marked tie point. With no marked points, diagonal ties at most 8 feet apart. |
| End ties | At least 3 longitudinal ties at each end of each section, at least 45 degrees from vertical. |
| Multi-section homes | Sections fastened every 24 inches at the bottom, end walls and roof, with a galvanized strip at least 8 inches wide over the peak. |
| Piers | First pier within 2 feet of each end. Piers over 36 inches (corners over 24) are double-stacked, and piers over 52 inches need an architect or engineer. |
| Ground under the home | Cleared of plants and roots, with grass no taller than 3 inches, and graded so water doesn’t collect under the home. |
La. R.S. 51:912.22 to 912.25, from Louisiana manufactured home installation and transportation law (R.S. 51:912.21 and following).
In flood-prone areas, state law has the foundation meet FEMA’s guide to installing manufactured homes in flood hazard areas (Louisiana manufactured home installation and transportation law (R.S. 51:912.21 and following)). That guide is FEMA P-85, which covers raised piers, anchoring and foundation choices for homes in floodplains (FEMA P-85, Protecting Manufactured Homes from Floods and Other Hazards). Violations of the installation rules can bring a civil fine of up to $2,500 per installation, or up to $5,000 if intentional or repeated (Louisiana manufactured home installation and transportation law (R.S. 51:912.21 and following)).
How we counted
We downloaded NOAA NCEI’s Storm Events bulk detail files (NCEI Storm Events bulk CSV files) on October 23, 2026. We kept Louisiana rows for Lafayette Parish and for the Lafayette forecast zone, which is where the National Weather Service logs tropical storms and hurricanes, from 1996 on. 1996 is when the database started logging all event types. Flood counts use the Flash Flood, Flood and Heavy Rain types, counted by distinct day so a storm logged twice in one day counts once. Tropical counts use the Tropical Storm and Hurricane types. Every number and chart on this page comes from those rows. The newest record we kept is from June 21, 2026. You can download the records we used as JSON.
Quick answers
When is hurricane season in Lafayette, Louisiana?
The Atlantic season runs from June 1 to November 30. The National Hurricane Center puts the peak on September 10, with most activity from mid-August to mid-October (National Hurricane Center, tropical cyclone climatology). NOAA’s records for Lafayette Parish since 1996 match that: 9 of the 10 tropical storm and hurricane records came in August, September or October.
What wind zone is Lafayette Parish?
Wind Zone II. HUD’s wind zone map puts Lafayette Parish in Zone II, along with Acadia, Iberia, St. Landry, St. Martin, Vermilion and other south Louisiana parishes (24 CFR 3280.305, HUD wind zone map). A home’s data plate shows the wind zone it was built for (24 CFR 3280.5, the data plate).
How long does flood insurance take to start?
Usually 30 days. An NFIP flood policy generally takes effect 30 days after you buy it. There are exceptions, such as a policy bought along with a new loan or a change to the flood map (FloodSmart (NFIP), buying a flood policy; 44 CFR 61.11, effective date of a flood policy). If you’re moving a home onto a new lot, line it up early.
Is it a bad idea to move a mobile home during hurricane season?
It’s riskier to schedule. DOTD stops permitted loads in heavy rain and names a mobile home in wind as a load that may not be safe to move (Louisiana DOTD, Regulations for Trucks, Vehicles and Loads (2026)). The NHC’s busiest stretch is mid-August to mid-October. A home caught between lots in a storm isn’t tied down, so leave slack in the schedule.
Sources: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; National Hurricane Center, tropical cyclone climatology; 24 CFR 3280.305, HUD wind zone map; 24 CFR 3280.5, the data plate; 24 CFR 3285.401, anchoring; Louisiana manufactured home installation and transportation law (R.S. 51:912.21 and following); FEMA P-85, Protecting Manufactured Homes from Floods and Other Hazards; FloodSmart (NFIP), buying a flood policy; 44 CFR 61.11, effective date of a flood policy; Louisiana DOTD, Regulations for Trucks, Vehicles and Loads (2026); LocalMovers.com, the mobile home moving process.
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LocalMovers.com’s Lafayette data (Q1 2026) puts a full-service single-wide move under 50 miles at about $6,500. Source: LocalMovers.com, Lafayette mobile home movers.
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