Louisiana, 1998

Flash Flood and Flooding in Louisiana, January 5, 1998

January 5, 1998 · NWS LIX · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Heavy rain of three to five inches occurred over portions of extreme southeast Louisiana, including the greater New Orleans area, during the morning hours. The heavy rain occurred within a few hours time and overwhelmed drainage pumping capacity resulting in widespread street flooding.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$250,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS LIX wrote it up.

Heavy rain of three to five inches occurred over portions of extreme southeast Louisiana, including the greater New Orleans area, during the morning hours. The heavy rain occurred within a few hours time and overwhelmed drainage pumping capacity resulting in widespread street flooding. Particularly hard hit was portions of Jefferson Parish where many cars were flooded and stranded during the morning commute. Several businesses and homes in Jefferson Parish were flooded, and one business building collapsed from the weight of rain water on its flat roof.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 flood, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Tangipahoa

When
January 5, 6:00 AM CST to 9:00 AM CST
Where
Tangipahoa County, Hammond
Coordinates
30.627, -90.406 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Jefferson

When
January 5, 7:00 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where
Jefferson County, North Portion
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
29.681, -90.098 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Orleans

When
January 5, 7:00 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where
Orleans County, New Orleans
Coordinates
30.069, -89.928 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, St. Tammany

When
January 5, 7:00 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where
St. Tammany County, Slidell
Coordinates
30.409, -89.954 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flood
Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.
Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Louisiana in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Louisiana, January 1998

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5631510, 5631507, 5631508, 5631509.