Edwards asked for 21 parishes to be declared federal disasters in his initial request.
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“There’s probably a lot of people in Louisiana right now that didn’t believe they were in a flood zone that are going to learn next week when their claim gets denied”, explained Holehouse.
Louisiana will mark the 11th anniversary later this month of Hurricane Katrina, which killed more than 1,800 people when floods overwhelmed levees and broke through flood walls protecting New Orleans on August 29, 2005.
As many as 20,000 people have been rescued following unprecedented floods in the southern USA state of Louisiana, including a 78-year-old woman who spent a night stranded in a tree, police said late Monday.
Edwards noted that 8,098 people have been sheltered since the start of emergency operations, but the number of people in shelters is changing rapidly as some are able to move back to their homes.
A coffin outside of a flood damaged tomb is covered to be resealed at the cemetery of Greater St. Mark Baptist Church in Walker, La., Tuesday, Aug. 16, 2016.
Officials downriver said they prepared as well as they could, but nothing could have readied them for this year’s unprecedented flood, not even the 1983 floods that wrecked much of the same area.
While worldwide wires are reporting eight people are dead, conflicting media reports suggest the number could be as high as 11. “We have greatly benefited from their expertise in the logistics of moving things all around the world and we really appreciate everything the National Guard has done”.
About 40,000 homes have been damaged by floods caused by heavy rains, and 20,000 people have been rescued.
Military vehicles evacuate residents from flooding in Louisiana. More than 800 miles away, Anderson’s Aunt, Rochell Prater has been restless watching the news from her birthplace in Louisiana.
Some 40,000 homes and business were reported to be without power.
A handout picture provided by the U.S. Coast Guard shows a flooded area of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on August 15, 2016.
Edwards said the recovery phase is beginning, but the response phase “is nowhere near being finished”.
As of Monday night, at least 36,000 people have registered for assistance online.
This aerial photo shows rescue officials and civilians rescue people from their flooded homes along the Tangipahoa River near Amite. “We’ve experienced flooding, Katrina, Rita, Isaac.this is by far the worst I’ve seen”, Ard said in a statement.
John Booth (left) sits with Angela Latiolais’s family while helping them save belongings after flooding in Gonzales, Louisiana. And some shelters had to shut down when they also took on water. “More than anything else, I’m proud that Louisianians are taking care of their own and people are being neighbors to one another”, he said.
The volunteer rescuers have been dubbed the “Cajun Navy”.
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Kunzelman reported from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
