Tropical Storm — Tangipahoa, Louisiana

2003-06-30 · Tangipahoa, Louisiana

Event narrative

Tropical Storm Bill developed in the southern Gulf of Mexico on Sunday, June 29, 2003, then moved steadily northward toward the Louisiana coast. Tropical Storm Bill moved into southeast Louisiana south of Houma around 2000CST on Monday, June 30, 2003 then moved north northeast across southeast Louisiana and at midnight was entering south Mississippi. The lowest pressure recorded in southeast Louisiana was 995.4 mb at the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON) facility near Cocodrie. Storm surge of 3 to 5 feet above normal was common along the southeast Louisiana coast and Lake Pontchartrain. The maximum storm surge was 5.8 ft (datum NAVD88) at the LUMCON facility. Sustained winds of 35 to 45 mph were common across the area. The maximum one minute sustained wind was 48 kt (53 mph) at LUMCON and the maximum gust was 54 knots (62 mph) at the NWS automated wind gage at the north end of the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in Mandeville. Storm total rainfall (approximately 48 hours) was 6 to 10 inches. The maximum measured rainfall was 10.16 inches at Folsom. Significant river flooding developed during the first five days of July as a result of the heavy rainfall and will be described in the July Storm Data. Three confirmed tornadoes touched down in southeast Louisiana. One of those tornadoes touched down near Reserve causing extensive damage to a private school and mobile home park. One woman and three small children were injured but fortunately, not seriously. The collective effects of Tropical Storm Bill in southeast Louisiana resulted in four injuries and approximately $44 million in property damage in the parishes of Jefferson, Livingston, Lafourche, Orleans, Plaquemine, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Tangiphahoa, and Washington. Specifically, the three tornadoes resulted in 4 injuries and an estimated $2 million in property damage; property damage from from the strong winds was estimated at 31 million, storm surge flooding along the coast and tidal lakes caused 4.0 million in damage and heavy rainfall, river flooding, and flash flooding caused $7 million in damage. Damage estimates are based on the Louisiana Insurance Department's estimate of $22 million in insured losses (included FEMA flood insurance claims) increased by a factor of two to account for uninsured losses.

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Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5367941. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.