Louisiana and Texas await Laura, "extremely dangerous" hurricane

The inhabitants of Louisiana and southern Texas feared Wednesday August 26 the arrival of hurricane Laura, reinforced in category 4 on a scale which has 5, and considered by meteorologists as "extremely dangerous".

Carrying winds blowing up to 230 km / h, it could cause a rise in water "fatal" and potentially "catastrophic", extreme winds, as well as "flash floods", warns the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

“Hurricane Laura is very dangerous and is escalating rapidly. Listen to local officials. We are with you!” Tweeted President Donald Trump.

Hurricane Laura is a very dangerous and rapidly intensifying hurricane. My Administration remains fully engaged with state & local emergency managers to continue preparing and assisting the great people Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Listen to local officials. We are with you! pic.twitter.com/x0JoijLUpb

Remembering Katrina

Laura could make landfall Wednesday evening or early Thursday morning. The eye of the hurricane was at 9 p.m. GMT 250 km south of the coastal town of Lake Charles, Louisiana, known for its major oil refining centers. Its inhabitants boarded buses after receiving a mandatory evacuation order due to the risk of flooding. New evacuation protocols had to be put in place because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"You only have a few hours to prepare and evacuate," Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards warned Wednesday on Twitter. His state remains traumatized by Katrina, a hurricane of category 5, the highest, which had flooded 80% of the city of New Orleans and left a thousand dead, 15 years ago almost to the day.

In the Old French Square, the historic center of New Orleans emptied of its tourists, sandbags were piled up in front of the doorsteps, and the windows of buildings of colonial architecture were protected by plywood panels.

25 depressions expected this season

In neighboring Texas, already grappling with the Covid-19 pandemic, the governor urged residents to take shelter. "Your belongings can be replaced, not your life," he warned the Weather Channel.

In Galveston, the site of a historic hurricane in 1900 that killed between 8,000 and 12,000 people, evacuation operations intensified and the school district canceled classes until Friday.

The neighboring town of Crystal Beach seemed deserted: few cars on the roads, the few inhabitants still outside hurrying to fill up the last tank or put up their windows.

The hurricane season in the Atlantic, which officially lasts from June 1 to November 30, promises to be particularly intense this year. The National Hurricane Center expects 25 lows. Laura is already the twelfth.

With AFP

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