State’s Homeland Security Plans Tested by Hurricane Laura [VIDEO]
Casey Tingle from the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness talks about the destruction across the state and the clean up plan in the wake of Hurricane Laura.
Amidst the devastation, Tingle did see a glimmer of good news. "Some of the storm surge projections that had been forecast for south Louisiana was not as great as (anticipated). Other good news from overnight...we've not heard significant reports of injuries. That's another piece of good news."
Tingle continues, pointing out that most of the worst storm damage is in the Cameron and Lake Charles area, other parts of the state were hit hard, as well. "What's you're going to see...are damage reports from Beauregard Parish, from Allen Parish, from Vernon Parish. Those damages are going to continue...we've already seen extensive power outages. The latest estimate I got was about 400,000, but that's going to be very dynamic. I think, based on some of this damage, it's going to be a while until the power comes back on in south Louisiana."
Tingle then addresses how this storm maintaining its strength so far inland is virtually unprecedented. "I don't know that it's ever been a situation where a hurricane has reached into northwest Louisiana."