Hurricane Delta, a Category 3 storm, hits the Louisiana coast on Friday night.
The Delta is expected to reach the coast about 10-30 miles east of where Hurricane 4 Laura raged in August.
Delta is the 25th storm in an unprecedented hurricane season. Forecasters have already run out of names, which is why they had to switch to the Greek alphabet to designate the next element.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said Laura's storm killed at least 28 people, destroyed 10,000 homes and damaged more than 130,000 more. In August, officials said Laura had 150 mph winds. caused storm surges up to 15 feet in some areas.
Edwards declared a state of emergency on Wednesday.
Back in Lake Charles this morning ahead of Hurricane Delta. Area has barely recovered from Hurricane Laura: Debris still everywhere, roofs patched with tarps, folks doing whatever they can to shore places up before the next storm hits tonight. pic.twitter.com/16gDpYzYqt
— Bryn Stole (@brynstole) October 9, 2020
«We expect hurricane winds and storm surges in southwest Louisiana in the least prepared area of our state,» the governor said in a press briefing Thursday.
The National Hurricane Center issued a warning early Friday morning. Louisiana residents are warned that a «life-threatening» storm surge is expected near and east of where the Delta reaches the coast. The center also says heavy rains will lead to «significant flash floods» in parts of the state on Friday and Saturday.
Parts of Cameron County have evacuation orders and mandatory curfews. Thousands of people have never been able to return to their homes since Laura hit the state over a month ago.
In a radio interview on Thursday, Edwards admitted that the area affected by Laura remains highly vulnerable.
“The buildings have not been renovated yet. The electrical infrastructure there is undergoing renovation. — said Edwards — People are very tired. More than 6,000 people from southwest Louisiana are still forced to live in 12 hotels, mostly in New Orleans. «
