Residents deal with aftermath of Hurricane Laura
An auto parts store employee surveys the damage to the facilty on Thursday, Aug. 27, 2020, in Lake Charles, La., in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Hurricane Laura made landfall in southern Louisiana on Aug. 27, tying as the fifth strongest hurricane to make landfall in the continental U.S. Currently, the Category 4 storm has claimed 18 lives in Texas and Louisiana.
Hurricane Laura made landfall with winds up to 150 mph and a storm surge in parts of Texas and Louisiana, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). As it moved inland, Hurricane Laura weakened to a tropical depression before moving across the Eastern Seaboard.
As of Monday morning, utility companies reported more than 360,000 people in Louisiana and Texas remained without power in Hurricane Laura's aftermath, according to data from PowerOutage.US.
Videos on social media show the storm’s winds causing extreme damage to buildings and vehicles.
Gov. John Bel Edwards of Louisiana said the state is taking Covid-19 precautions at shelters and in rescue efforts.
Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas attributed the minimal number of fatalities to early evacuations.
“The storm surge and the powerful winds could have led to catastrophic deaths,” Abbott told the press. “We no doubt saved lives because of those evacuations.”
Both states issued grave warnings about the storm. More than 1.5 million people in the coastal regions of Texas and Louisiana were under some form of evacuation orders.
Darian Barrett, a junior music education and violin major originally from Kingwood, Texas, said, “Hurricane Laura was headed right for my hometown until it suddenly veered east shortly before landfall.”
Barrett’s family was advised to evacuate by government officials but decided to stay in their home and weather the storm.
“We are far enough inland that the storm surge was not going to be anywhere close to my house, meaning we just had to deal with hurricane winds, tornadoes and rain,” said Barrett. “In instances like this, it's safer to risk a tree falling onto your house than being caught on the interstate with wind speeds ranging from 130-157 mph.”
According to NPR News, Laura is the 10th hurricane to make landfall in the United States with winds of 150 mph or higher.
Daoith Porm, right, and Bunsant Khov, left, board their business with Hurricane Laura just hours away, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, in Bridge City, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
In the last three years, the U.S. has had seven hurricane disasters that each caused at least $1 billion in damage, totaling $335 billion, according to AP News.
“In 2017, Hurricane Harvey hit my town hard. God protected my street, thankfully, and my home was virtually unaffected,” said Barrett. “However, just two streets over were homes with over 6 feet of water in them.”
Hurricane Harvey, a Category 4 storm similar to Laura, left extensive damage in its wake in 2017.
“The biggest things that those impacted need is the funding to get back to where they were,” said Barrett. “Donating nonperishable food items is another good way to help … if the Lee community comes together - within social distancing guidelines - and raises funds and provides for those affected, then they are supporting the victims.”
