USA – 8 Dead, 40,000 Homes Damaged in Louisiana Floods

Major floods hit southern parts of Louisiana from 12 August, 2016. By 14 August the situation had deteriorated and a major disaster was declared by President Obama.

The declaration initially included the four parishes of East Baton Rouge, Livingston, St. Helena, Tangipahoa. Since then the parishes of Acadia, Ascension, East Feliciana, Iberia, Lafayette, Pointe Coupee, St. Landry and Vermilion have been added.

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said that he expects more parishes will be added in the future.

In a press conference of 16 August, the governor confirmed that 8 people had died in storm related incidents and that an estimated 40,000 homes have suffered damage.

“I have traveled to the impacted parishes and met with families dealing with devastating loss due to this historic flood event,” said Gov. Edwards. “I am grateful that the federal government has added additional parishes to this disaster declaration. We are traveling the state with FEMA representatives who are constantly collecting data on the damage, and we will continuously update our request to add more parishes as needed. I am optimistic that more parishes will be approved as we work around the clock to ensure every resource is available to the people of Louisiana.”

Overview of the Louisiana Flood Situation So Far

• More than 30,000 people have been rescued from homes and vehicles
• Between 8,000 and 11,000 people are currently staying in 70 shelters
• 8 flood related deaths have been confirmed
• An estimated 40,000 houses have been damaged by the floods
• 200 roads have been closed
• 1,400 bridges need to be inspected before they are reopened to traffic
• River levels have broken records in at least 11 different locations
• Levels of the Amite River at Magnolia reached almost 7 feet (2.13 metres) higher than previous record
• At least 20 locations in Louisiana recorded more than 1 foot (300 mm) of rain in 72 hours

A list of shelters for those evacuated can be found here.

Volunteer to Help

If you are interested in volunteering to help, officials suggest visiting these websites to find out where help is needed:

• Volunteer Louisiana: http://www.volunteerlouisiana.gov
• American Red Cross: http://www.redcross.org/local/louisiana/volunteer
• Louisiana Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters: http://lavoad.org

Photos of the Louisiana Floods, August 2016

Louisiana