Flood, Rapides
- When
- March 4, 12:00 AM CST to March 26, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Rapides forecast zone
- Property damage
- $250,000
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 31.199, -92.533 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood in Louisiana, March 4 to 26, 2001
52 feet on the 13th. Areas unprotected by the levee system had as much as ten feet of water in them, primarily in the Pineville area and Bayou Rigolette areas.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $250,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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 LCH wrote it up.
The Red River near Alexandria was above flood stage for over three weeks, cresting at 35.52 feet on the 13th. Areas unprotected by the levee system had as much as ten feet of water in them, primarily in the Pineville area and Bayou Rigolette areas. Rescues of trapped cows and horses were common, but there were no reports of human injuries.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 3, 9:05 PM CST, 2 hours 55 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Mar 3, 9:05 PM CST, 2 hours 55 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS AND SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA 905 PM CST SAT MAR 3 2001 ALL PRECIP HAS EXITED AREA. WILL REMOVE RAIN CHANCE FROM NORTHERN ZONES. OTHERWISE...EVERYTHING ELSE APPEARS ON TRACK. .LCH...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY...GMZ450-455-470-475 .PRELIM NUMBERS... AEX 46/64/37/65/34 50000 BPT 47/68/40/67/39 40000 LCH 47/68/40/67/38 40000 LFT 50/67/42/65/37 30000 23...MARCOT9TE
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
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.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Storm Surge and High Wind in California, March 4, 2001
- Heavy Snow in New York, March 4 to 6, 2001
- High Wind in California, March 4 to 5, 2001
- Heavy Snow in Pennsylvania, March 4 to 7, 2001
- Flooding in Texas, March 4 to 12, 2001
- Tornado in Florida, March 4, 2001
- Flooding in Louisiana, March 4 to 12, 2001
- Tornado in Florida, March 4, 2001
- Damaging Wind in Florida, March 4, 2001
- Damaging Wind in Florida, March 4, 2001
- Damaging Wind in Florida, March 4, 2001
- High Wind in California, March 4, 2001
More
Every storm in Louisiana in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Louisiana, March 2001
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: 5237481.