By Rick Jones, Presbyterian News Service.
Record flooding over the weekend in parts of Louisiana has left thousands homeless and as many as a half dozen people dead. The Presbytery of South Louisiana says the heavy rains with as much as six to 10 inches, took everyone by surprise.
“The area impacted by the flooding is immense. Record rainfall in a very short period of time,” said Tom Tucker, treasurer and assistant stated clerk for the presbytery. “Rivers are cresting four to five feet higher than they’ve ever crested before. In some cases, the rivers are 10 to 12 feet above flood stage and that covers a lot of area.”
Tucker says four parishes are severely impacted and four others are just now beginning to feel the effects.
“These include vast areas that have never been flooded before, no history of flooding and were not on any flood plain map,” said Tucker. “We’re not talking six or eight inches but three, four or six feet of water.”
The heavy rains began on Friday and continued into Saturday according to the National Weather Service. Drier weather prevailed on Sunday, but emergency management officials have urged residents to stay in their homes if they can and off the roads. Authorities say Livingston Parish was among the hardest hit with some towns virtually cut off from the outside world.