Thousands in southeast Texas were without power early Thursday as catastrophic storm surges and extreme wind hit coastal areas during evacuation orders, and a weakening Hurricane Laura continues on its way north through Louisiana.
Hurricane Laura moved ashore for 1 hour CDT just east of the Texas-Louisiana line at Cameron Parish, La., With the force of a Category 4 hurricane, maximum sustained winds at about 150 mph, and a minimum central pressure of 938 mb. In a matter of hours, it has since weakened to a Category 2, and Laura’s eyewall pushes the interior across southwest Louisiana.
More than 80,000 customers were without power in southeast Texas, according to Energy Texas, Inc., with some 42,000 affected in Jefferson County, 29,000 in Orange County, and 9,600 in Hardin County.
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It remains too early to assess the full extent of the damage from the storm, and too soon to rescue those who do not evacuate from the area.
The National Hurricane Center updated its guidance on the ocean water that was pushed ashore, saying they expect a “non-survivable” storm surge with large and destructive waves causing catastrophic damage from Sea Rim State Park, Texas, to Intracoastal City , Louisiana, including Calcasieu and Sabine Lakes,
“Hurricane force winds and widespread damage will spread well inland throughout the day in parts of extreme eastern Texas and western Louisiana,” the hurricane center said.
Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, on Wednesday warned Texans who had not already left areas under evacuation orders to get out of the storm because power outages were expected and generating generators in homes posed a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
The ferry terminal was closed due to Hurricane Laura on Wednesday, August 26, 2020 in Galveston, Texas. (Brett Coomer / Houston Chronicle via AP)
“The power of Hurricane Laura is unprecedented, and Texans must now take action to get out of the way and protect themselves,” Abbott told a news conference in Austin. “The conditions of this storm are unsustainable, and I urge Southeast Texans to take advantage of these last few hours to evacuate, secure their property, and take all precautionary measures to keep themselves and their loved ones safe.
Mandatory evacuation orders were in place Wednesday for the cities of Galveston and Port Arthur, as well as the Bolivar Peninsula and Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Newton and Orange Counties. Voluntary evacuation orders were in place for other areas of the Texas coast.
Texas Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd on Wednesday made a final effort to encourage remaining residents to move to Dallas, Austin and San Antonio. When thousands of evacuees filled spaces at shelters, others were forced to sleep in cars or were issued hotel vouchers because the government was trying to prevent one from being caught in the coronavirus pandemic.
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Abbott said the state would not be able to rescue those trapped in Hurricane Laura’s path from Wednesday night until 9 a.m. Monday Thursday because blocked roads, crashed pipelines and flooding could get in the way and sooner. make searches too dangerous, the Texas Tribune reported.
