LA confronts twin storm damage - Isidore and Lili damaged or destroyed 5,000 homes last week.

VERMILLION PARISH, LA - Disaster Response-Looting-Carbon Monoxide Death-West Nile

By Tuesday thousands of residents were still without power, others without water, as they tried to salvage what they could.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said more than 40,000 residents had registered for assistance from both storms and that $4 million in housing assistance had been approved. Such funds can be used for such things as lodging expense reimbursement, small emergency repairs, temporary rental help and mortgage and rental assistance.

FEMA said four Disaster Recovery Centers were open in Slidell, Houma, St. Bernard and New Orleans. Others were scheduled to open in affected parishes, it said.

Faith-based organizations were lending a hand, with Church World Service helping to coordinate long-term recovery groups that plan to augment their ongoing response to Tropical Storm Isidore to address additional damages from Lili.

Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) reported that water damage from flooding would create long-term work needs.

"The stages of response include basic debris removal, mudding out homes, tearing out drywall, and then waiting for things to dry before rebuilding can begin," PDA reported.

State officials estimated Lili caused $170 million to insured property. Those without insurance will face an even tougher recovery.

More than 80,000 people in south and central Louisiana were still without power early this week. Some households in the south-central part of the state also were reported without water.

Curfews remained in effect in several towns to prevent looting. Police and armed National Guard troops patrolled the streets. Schools and businesses in several parishes remained closed as did some state courthouses.

Authorities on Monday reported the arrest of two people last week on charges of stealing $120,000 from homes and businesses that had been evacuated for Tropical Storm Isidore and Hurricane Lili.

"They were obviously taking advantage of everyone's concern about the storms, and preying on those concerns," said Capt. Patrick Yoes of the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Department.

In Louisiana, one death was reported due to carbon monoxide poisoning, the result of using a home generator for power. State health officials reported more than 60 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning.

The storms also affected businesses, including offshore oil and gas production facilities. Officials had to evacuate more than 869 platforms and 20,000 people. The U.S. Interior Department said the shutdown halted the production of about 10 million barrels of oil and 60 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

Despite the damage, Louisiana residents admitted that the hurricane could have been worse. Lili had been a roaring Category 4 hurricane with winds topping 145 mph as it made its way across the Gulf, but fizzled to a Category 2 storm with 100 mph winds by the time it made landfall.

"Assessment is ongoing, but it appears as though the damage caused by Hurricane Lili is far less than it we had all feared it might be," said Tom Hazelwood of the United Methodist Committee on Relief. "There are pockets of damage."

". . . I've lived through Hurricane Andrew and lots of other storms like this but I've never seen one slow down before it hit land," said Bert Langley, director of missions for the Gulf Coast and Evangeline Baptist associations. "For some mysterious reason it went from 145 mph to 100 mph before it came in."

If Lili brought less damage than expected, the storm did cause some less visible -- though significant -- damage to the barrier islands.

"Lili had a bigger impact on the islands than Andrew did," said Shea Penland, a Louisiana coastal expert and coastal geologist from the University of New Orleans. "The amount of erosion is unbelievable."

That means the area will be less protected come the next hurricane, since the islands serve as a protective barrier for coastal communities against hurricanes and other storms.

Lili was also blamed for 12 deaths in Haiti when, as a tropical storm, it struck the island Sept. 27. More than 1,400 homes were damaged or destroyed. The storm also left seven people dead in Jamaica and St. Vincent and one in Cuba.

Also reported: Only six new cases of mosquito-borne West Nile virus were reported in the past week, and this might signal the end of the outbreak, the state epidemiologist said Friday.

Dr. Raoult Ratard said the two recent tropical weather systems that blew into Louisiana in the last two weeks may have helped break the cycle of virus from bird to mosquito to humans.

"During both storms, mosquitoes became inactive," he said. "When mosquitoes stop feeding on birds, the virus becomes dormant in the birds, and without new bird flocks that are infected with West Nile virus, the cycle from mosquito to bird to human is broken.

Make Sure Free Republic Is Here For The Next Generation Of Freepers!

Donate Here By Secure Server

Or mail checks to
FreeRepublic , LLC
PO BOX 9771
FRESNO, CA 93794

or you can use

PayPal at Jimrob@psnw.com

STOP BY AND BUMP THE FUNDRAISER THREAD

I hadn't heard that info about West Nile.

We really got lucky in southeast LA. All the folks still being affected by these storms are in our prayers.

bump

But it still wasn't as bad as it could have been. Had it hit land as a cat. 4, the destruction would have been SO MUCH WORSE. I own a home on the Gulf Coast and my son is living there while I play in LA this year. I was worried BIG TIME! I chatted with a friend in Baton Rouge the night of Lili and the next morning. All she had were some sticks in the yard, that had fallen from the trees. They were lucky!

I live in Central Louisiana, where there are still thousands out of electricity. We were very lucky not to have had more damage from Lili. We had winds of 74 miles/hour with many trees down. I can only imagine what the folks south of us went through. I keep all in my prayers.

My husband and I were talking last night about the fact that central LA was hit hard, but we aren't seeing it on the news. A coworker told him how bad the situation is in some areas, but the New Orleans media just isn't talking about it.

I hope everyone's electricity is back on soon. We were out of power for about 10 hours. I can't even imagine if we were still in the dark.

". . . I've lived through Hurricane Andrew and lots of other storms like this but I've never seen one slow down before it hit land," said Bert Langley, director of missions for the Gulf Coast and Evangeline Baptist associations. "For some mysterious reason it went from 145 mph to 100 mph before it came in."

I am with this guy.
IMHO, prayers were answered!!

Try Squirrel Run in New Iberia, Louisiana. I have not played there, but my son an avid golfer has played there. There are a number of good courses in Lafayette, but I don't know the names. Have a good and safe trip.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.