More than 150,000 Louisiana residents have received much needed economic relief in the form of federal disaster-related food stamps this week, and now thousands more may find themselves eligible as four new parishes meet DFSP guidelines to receive aid. Grant, LaSalle, Catahoula and St. Helena parishes all meet mandated guidelines allowing residents of those areas to begin applying for assistance.
The four parishes join these already declared eligible: Acadia, Allen, Ascension, Assumption, Avoyelles, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Evangeline, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee, Rapides, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Vermilion, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana.
With the decision of local Office of Emergency Officials to temporarily close current Disaster Food Stamp sites because of the threat of Hurricane Ike, along with sites in these four new parishes being arranged and the possibility of another program being needed after this second hurricane, it will be vital that residents continue to monitor the Disaster Food Stamp page on the DSS website at the address http://www.dss.state.la.us/departments/dss/Disaster_Food_Stamp_Program_.html as well as local media. They can also call 1-888-524-3578 for help finding the most current application sites.
The Department of Social Services is working with local officials to identify sites of operation for registration for the program. Information about sites will not be released until those plans are firmly in place.
With the possibility of Hurricane Ike necessitating the need for the activation of a second Disaster Food Stamp Program, DSS is asking eligible applicants to keep their Electronic Benefit Cards in case they are needed again.
Individuals with disabilities can designate an authorized representative to apply for Disaster Food Stamps on their behalf. Also, each site manager has developed special procedures for assisting the disabled. Applicants with these special needs should make themselves known to the site manager or staff at the site In order to help the elderly, Council on Aging staff members have been trained to administer Disaster Food Stamps.
People 60 years of age or older should contact their local parish Councils on Aging for the nearest Disaster Food Stamp Assistance Application Site for seniors. If the local Council on Aging is not available, seniors should contact the Governor's Office of Elderly Affairs at 1-877-340-9100.
DSS Secretary Williamson emphasized that the Disaster Food Stamps program has strictly defined income eligibility and can only be used for the purchase of food, and reminded participants in the regular Food Stamp Program that they do not need to apply. Their benefits were automatically lifted to the maximum amount allowable for September and their August benefits have been increased by 20 percent in order to replace lost food.
Search, Rescue
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) and the Louisiana State Police (LSP) joined forces Saturday morning with search and rescue (SAR) efforts in southwest Louisiana. LSP dispatched 10 troopers this morning from Troop D in Lake Charles to assist LDWF enforcement agents with water rescues.
Due to extensive flooding from Hurricane Ike in the southwestern portion of the state SAR operations became necessary. LDWF set up a SAR command center in Jennings, Friday, Sept. 12, where they began deploying agents Saturday morning shortly after the hurricane passed. State troopers joined LDWF enforcement agents in Jennings, Vinton and Moss Bluff where SAR was underway.
"Partnerships like this are vital to succ! essful search and rescue operations during disaster times like these. We welcome their assistance and appreciate their dedication to our state." commented LDWF Secretary Robert Barham. State police have committed their assistance to LDWF for the duration of the operations.
More Search And Rescue
National Guard and the Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries is moving search and rescue assets boats to Hackberry in Cameron Parish. Guardsmen and agents launched at noon and will attempt to rescue seven civilians in Calcasieu Parish within the subdivision locally known as Choupique Bayou in vicinity of La Hwy 27 and La. Hwy 108, near the town of Carlyss, LA.
Louisiana National Guard reports rising floodwater in lower Vermilion Parish causing increased flooding in Erath and Delcambre. Erath experiencing house flooding including Erath High School campus. Hwy 14 is impassable at Delcambre Canal Bridge, Hwy 675 north of Hwy 14 is impassable at approximately 50 yards north of ! Hwy 14.
National Guard is continuing search and rescue operations in Calcasieu Parish. Hwy 108 to Hwy 27 is clear. Little debris in road, utility poles down between mile markers 8 and 9 on HWY 108. I-10 is clear west to the Vinton exit in Calcasieu Parish. National Guard is moving Search and Rescue boats to Hackberry in Cameron Parish. Schooner Bayou Lock in Vermillion Parish is flooded. Highway 333 in Vermilion Parish flooded and is not passable three miles south of Esther, including Intracoastal City. Calcasieu River was approximately 10.0 ft at Lake Charles at 08:00 am. Flood stage, according to USGS is four feet.
St Tammany: Hwy 11 south of Schneider Canal is flooded and impassable; 5 mile bridge is also closed to thru traffic. Many impassable roadways in Slidell. Hwy 90 has water to LA/MS state line. Avery Estates and Palm Lake are flooded. Madisonville streets inundated resulting in numerous road closures below US 190 includ! ing La Hwy 22. Shelter in Mandeville open. No mandatory evacuations.
St. Bernard: National Guard Blackhawk Helicopter mission complete. Confirmation that non-federal levees experienced overtopping only, no breaches. Federal protection system held, but non-federal protection has been overtopped; Hopedale, Shell Beach, and Yscloskey communities are flooded. Water level gage at Bay Gardene south of Caernarvon shows water level continues to fall.
Plaquemines: Highway 23 is closed south of Myrtle Grove due to flooding, according to DOTD. National Guard Blackhawk Helicopter mission to inspect and evaluate flooding and levee conditions is complete. Confirmation that non-federal levees experienced 1.5 miles of overtopping resulting in a 50-foot wide, five-foot deep scour near Scarsdale but no breaches. One-hundred forty-three Guardsmen sandbagged Scarsdale scour site on Sept. 12. 28,000 sandbags have been placed. National Guard is building sandbag wall to contain overtopping. Pumps are workin! g to pump water out. Water levels have dropped.
Estimated by the Corps of Engineers that 125, 3,000-pound sandbags have been sent by the Corps and are being filled by contractors. The National Guard will position these bags when search and rescue operations end. National Guard reports that 99 percent of the overtopping has been contained along the levee and the remaining one percent is minimal.
Orleans/Jefferson: Levees are intact, no breaches or overtopping, pumps are fully functional. Floodgates throughout the region remain closed.
IHNC: Current water elevation is eight feet, flood walls are built to 12 feet. Water not expected to threaten walls. No ships/boats dislodged.
Lafitte: Temporary aqua-tube levee protecting the Town of Lafitte has failed. Pumps have been requested to assist in the unwatering of the town. Water levels on near USGS gauges show water levels are slowly falling at this t! ime.
Grand Isle: National Guard assets on site report water is beginning to recede. Island is currently cut off due to inundation of La. Hwy 1 below Leeville. Military staged to respond as soon as water subsides. Mayor Camardelle reported 3-feet of water over Hwy 1. All temporary sand-levee work destroyed, several breaches have formed in original levee on east end of island. Gages in Barataria Bay indicating peak surge was equal to or slightly higher (6-inches) than Gustav peak. Corps of Engineers and Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration assets are on stand by to assess conditions of beach levees and shoreline protection structures. Work to restore protection structures is scheduled to resume as soon as water levels permit.
Lafourche: National Guard reports it has road access from Napoleonville to Houma. All areas below Golden Meadow floodgate are inundated. Water levels are starting to decline. National Guard deployed 50 personnel and sand bag trucks to Industrial Park Road an! d Second Street Lock near the Intracoastal Waterway.
Terrebonne: Storm surge has caused flooding north of Prospect Road and south of Van Avenue in Houma: 26,000 residents affected according to Houma Police Department. Houma airport inaccessible to fixed-wing aircraft due to flooding. Shelter is open at Evergreen High School for flood victims. The Clinton Street Pump Station in Houma is undermined by hydraulic pressure from storm surge and is threatening to collapse. Sandbags are being filled to shore up areas around pump station. Once Search and Rescue operations have been completed, 3000lb sandbags will be placed. Flooding from all five major Parish bayous, Dularge, Pointe aux Chenes, Terrebonne, Petite Calliou and Grand Calliou has been reported. GOHSEP is providing 20, 24-inch pumps to unwater the Parish. Pumps are in route. State and Pontchartrain levee officials are coordinating to send additional fuel for pumps. A majority of lower Terreb! onne, south of the Intracoastal Waterway has been inundated. Ward-7 le vee in Chauvin is now confirmed to have been overtopped. Attempts are being made to isolate the system to minimize additional flooding. Communities of Pointe Aux Chenes, Montegut, Dulac, and Dularge, and portions of lower-Theriot are flooded.
St. Mary: Stages on Lower Atchafalaya are again rising, with the stage currently at 7.16 at 11:20 AM. Information from St. Mary Parish government indicated that levees have breached along Hanson Canal and Yellow Bayou. According to St. Mary officials, all nursing home residents and those in affected neighborhoods have been evacuated to safety as of 0100 Saturday. National Guard reports 18 civilians rescued near Franklin and evacuated to Franklin Recreation Center. Soldiers standing by subdivisions ready to assist civilians as requested/needed. Franklin Canal Levee has been compromised. Buses and ambulances are currently evacuating a near by nursing home. Water is overtopping the Ivanhoe canal spoil bank. Co! rps of Engineers is deploying three tractor- driven pumps to unwater the HWY 317 levee area which was overtopped. Corps is also proving 25,000 sandbags to the flood fighting effort. Bayou Sale levees, Hwy 317, west of Berwick are overtopped. HWY 387 is closed.
Iberia: National Guard at 0935 hours report indicates that water is cresting roads at Avery Island Bridge, south of Delcambre. Water is up to the bridges at Lydia and the Port of Iberia. Eighty-one evacuees are presently at Iberia middle school but a total of 200 to 300 are expected. National Guard is monitoring the roads from Gueydan east and will continue to provide updates. Hayes Road and Railroad Road southwest of New Iberia are inundated with one-foot of water and are impassable to civilian traffic. Areas south of Hwy 90 and East of 675 evacuated. Assets are in place should further evacuations be necessary.
Vermilion: LANG reports rising floodwater in ! lower Vermilion causing increased flooding in Erath and Delcambre. The Vermilion River is cresting (12.1 feet) at Perry (below Abbeville): the river has still not crested upstream at Lafayette. Erath experiencing house flooding, including Erath High School campus. Hwy 14 is impassable at Delcambre Canal Bridge, HWY 675 north of HWY 14 is impassable at approximately 50 meters north of HWY 14. At 9:40 p.m. Friday, National Guard reported that Delcambre was flooding with water rising at 1-ft per hour. On Shady Lane in Delcambre, one individual refused to leave his home. National Guard is keeping presence there to monitor the resident. On Hwy 14, east of the Delcambre Bridge, water was crossing the highway and entering homes. On HWY 675, water rose 1-ft in previous hour. Power line down on Darnell Road, north of Lydia. National Guard personnel were in route to support bus mission to evacuate citizens. National Guard is on HWY 333 warning residents of water 5 miles south of Henry and rising. All locks/floodgates are closed and undamaged, as are lev! ees. Significant flooding on HWY 82 and arteries off HWYS 330, 685, and 688. Chevron building in Intracoastal City is flooded. Water on road at Avery Island bridge. Sherriff reported all residents of Pecan Island, Forked Island, and Intracoastal City evacuated. Highway 333 flooded and not passable three miles south of Esther, including Intracoastal City.
Calcasieu: Calcasieu River at I-10 was approximately 10.0 ft at Lake Charles at 08:00 am. Flood stage is 4.0 feet. River still has not crested. National Guard and LDWF is continuing search and rescue operations. HWY 108 to HWY 27 is clear: little debris in road, utility poles down between mile markers 8 and 9 on Hwy 108. I-10 is clear west to the Vinton exit. Shelter of last resort has been opened. Calcasieu locks all closed, expected to reopen 8:00 a.m Sunday. National Guard assets are in place.
Cameron: National Guard is moving Search and Rescue assets to Hackberr! y, projected launch time is scheduled for noon and will attempt to res cue 7 civilians within the subdivision locally known as Choupique (Shoepick) Bayou in vicinity of LA-27 and LA-108, Davis Dugas Road, Carlyss, LA. Two feet of water over HWY 27 up to north of Hackberry. National Guard rescued a motorist who was stranded in vehicle Friday. Guard also rescued 8-year old boy to his father in Hackberry Friday, mother would not leave house in Cameron. Hwy 82 to Texas line (including Cameron Court House) and Hwy 27 along coast are inundated with up to 5 feet of water. Guard has high water vehicles and boats in place for assistance with evacuations. Parish EOC moved to Calcasieu Parish Sheriff's Office. EOC director expect damage in lower portion to parish to be significant due to high number of modular buildings. The stage on the Calcasieu River at Cameron has fallen from a peak of 9.8 feet at 3 am today to about 6.3 feet at 10 am.
