The heavy rains began Friday, with between 6 and 10 inches (15 to 25 centimeters) of rain falling on parts of southeast Louisiana, and several more inches on Saturday, the National Weather Service said.
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The governor has also deployed the Louisiana National Guard, which said it has approximately 1,000 soldiers on the ground assisting in search and rescue, that number will increase to 1,200 to 1,250 by the end of the day Saturday.
Neighbors have also launched their boats into the floodwaters to lend a hand.
One man asks for a knife to cut the cloth roof of the auto – which was a convertible – and hops on the vehicle’s trunk, which juts into the air as the auto quickly sinks.
On Saturday, the body of a woman was recovered from the Tickfaw River, also in St. Helena Parish, after a vehicle in which she was riding was swept away by flood waters. The woman shouts to her recuers from inside the vehicle: “Oh my god I’m drowning”, just moments before the auto is fully submergged. As WAFB reports, the men came upon a auto sinking in the floodwaters Saturday, with a woman trapped inside.
In the almost one-and-a-half minute video, the trio can be seen trying hard to open the door of the vehicle failing which one of them also tries to break window.
At least three people are understood to have been killed and one person is missing following what Louisiana governor John Bel Edwards has described as “unprecedented” and “historic” flooding.
The floodwaters caught many people off guard.
In addition to rescuing people, some folks are focusing on stranded pets. Thousands of people have been rescued, and the governor has declared a state of emergency even as more rain is expected over the weekend.
“They opened up their truck and started giving out fruits and vegetables to people”, she said.
He said at a press conference Saturday that officials still don’t know how bad the flooding will get and warned residents not to rely on past experience when deciding on a course of action. There were not enough beds to house all of the shelter-seekers, so many had to sleep on floors, she said.
“The dramatic images are all too familiar in Louisiana – water up to the eaves of homes, people stranded on rooftops, some lifted to safety by helicopter rescue teams”, she said. Told that the dog is probably gone, the woman responds, “No, she better not be”. “We’ve been rescuing subdivisions”, he said. Drivers tried to navigate treacherous roads where the water lapped at the side or covered the asphalt in a running stream.
“I can’t get the dog”, he gasped. The National Weather Service said a slow-moving pressure system would continue to bring precipitation to Louisiana and parts of Southern Texas on Sunday.
Louisiana Transportation Secretary Shawn Wilson said authorities are preparing for more rain, as Troeh reported. As it continues to rain in the Pelican State, more and more people are left abandoned, wondering what to do next. The woman’s husband and mother-in-law clung to a tree for hours before they were rescued Saturday, Martin said.
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The woman, her husband and her mother-in-law were driving on a state highway Friday when their auto was swept off the road.
