Most models now have Hurricane Laura heading straight for the Cameron Parish coast and moving directly inland to Lake Charles early Thursday night.
This development has led to voluntary evacuation recommendations in the region. Calcasieu Emergency Preparedness director Dick Gremillion says it’s not the projected 105 mile per hour winds that have them most concerned.
“Really a greater concern is the storm surge. They are predicting ten to fifteen feet storm surge,” says Gremillion.
Gremillion pointed to the flooding that occurred during Hurricane Ike in 2008 and Hurricane Rita in 2005 as possibly similar scenarios.
Lake Charles may not be on the coast but Gremillion says the storm surge still threatens the city due to the marshland to the south, and shipping channels that link Lake Charles to the Gulf.
(UPDATE: 16:30 08-24-2020) A hurricane watch is in effect for the southwest and south-central Louisiana coastline, with a tropical storm watch extending to the mouth of the Mississippi.
“Because of the ways the ship channels are configured here and it comes up through Calcasieu Lake and up into Lake Charles the water just pushes right through just like it were the Gulf,” says Gremillion.
Models show Laura sitting just shy of category three strength upon landfall. Gremillion says category threes usually trigger mandatory evacuation orders but Gremillion says it would be too late at this point to call for a mandatory evacuation. That being said, if you reside in a travel trailer, unsecured mobile home, or a storm surge area you need to seek other shelter.
Comments