(AP Photo/Max Becherer). In this Sunday, Aug. 14, 2016 photo, a girl takes her pony for a walk on the dry road where homes were flooded near Walker, La., after heavy rains inundated the region. It seems relief in Louisiana is still far off yet.
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“That’s going to be the case over the next couple of days”, Edwards said.
But though the rain had mostly stopped, new places in the state are facing flood dangers from the deluge that has sent thousands into shelters.
The governor said that flooding records are being broken, adding that the crisis is not over and the water is still going to rise in many areas.
While floodwaters were receding in some areas, allowing residents to get a look at their damaged homes, waters were rising in other places Monday.
Louisiana faced epic flooding Monday, with six people killed and thousands evacuated to emergency shelters after waterways in the southern part of the state overflowed their banks. Shelters filled up so fast that some people had to sleep on floors Saturday night because not enough cots had arrived. “It was an absolute act of God”.
“We’ve never seen anything like this”.
– Amtrak is busing customers from Jackson, Mississippi to New Orleans instead of using the train.
As more rain fell and floodwaters rose Saturday night in the Baton Rouge area, Steele said buses were used to move people out of their communities.
Resident Toni Denova just bought new furniture for her home but that’s not what anxious her.
“It’s one thing to say we’re getting set up for a lot of rain”.
Over the weekend, parts of Louisiana and MS saw more than a foot – 2 feet, in some neighborhoods – of rain from a stalled storm.
Sterling’s aunt, Sandra Sterling, was among those who volunteered to go house by house, by boat, to evacuate stranded people. He criticized government officials for closing roads, blocking boats from reaching launch areas.
The Louisiana National Guard reported that its soldiers rescued almost 500 people and 61 pets in the 24 hours between Friday and Saturday, by boat, helicopter, and using high-water vehicles.
State officials confirmed an eighth death from the floods in southern Louisiana, and the extent of damage was coming into clearer view.
After a night in a shelter, Marc Matherne planned to return home to help stranded neighbors.
And snakes are more prone to enter abandoned homes, cars or even furniture if their nests are flooded, according to the Louisiana Health Department.
From the ground it was just as bad.
The slow-moving, low-pressure system moved into Texas, but the National Weather Service warned there is still a danger of new flooding, as the water works its way toward the Gulf of Mexico.
Authorities late Monday said a body had been pulled from floodwaters in Baton Rouge, raising the toll to seven dead.
An area just north of Baton Rouge near Zachary, La. received the most rainfall in the 72 hours with just over 26 inches. Rivers such as the Comite near East Baton Rouge and the Tickfaw near Livingston were expected to keep rising through Monday morning, causing more backwater flooding from rivers and bayous like the surge that impacted Prairieville. Flood stage is 20 feet.
Anna Johnson, of Denham Springs, near Baton Rouge, captured the erie sight of coffins floating away after being uprooted as graves became sodden in the catastrophic rain. The other hardest hit parishes include East Baton Rouge, St. Helena, Livingston, and Tangipahoa. Three people have died in the floods and one person is reported missing, while about 20,000 were rescued over the weekend.
Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon said in hard-hit Baton Rouge, only 12 percent of residences are covered by flood insurance. The numbers “were really shocking”, he said.
Currently, the LANG has over 3,300 Guardsmen assisting with emergency flood operations including evacuations, search and rescue operations, engineering missions, commodities distribution, and security and shelter support. When she tries to dive under for her dog, he goes underwater and reappears holding the dog.
They escaped in her husband’s pickup – he was behind the wheel and she was on the hood – helping navigate.
Her family found shelter at the house of another brother. But they didn’t rest long.
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“In a helicopter, when you’re hovering 150-200 feet over a trailer park or neighborhood and trying to drop a hoist cable into a 10-foot by 10-foot area so you don’t get it stuck in trees or snagged in power lines, that can be very challenging”, L.t.j.g.
