Hurricane Laura has ripped through several parts of Texas and Louisiana, leaving a trail of devastation, flooding and at least seven people dead.
Gov. John Bel Edwards said Thursday a 14-year-old girl became the first fatality in Louisiana. The hurricane remains a Category 1 hurricane, with winds escalating to 75 mph and more than 170 miles after landfall.
In Iota, Acadia Parish Sheriff K.P. Gibson confirmed a 60-year-old man died from a fallen tree.
Two other people in Louisiana died from falling trees, according to reporter Abbi Rocha, citing Edwards.
It was unclear how the other two people died in Louisiana.
In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott said there was one unconfirmed death there, near Sabine.
The hurricane is moving past Louisiana, but several have reported massive damage to their homes and businesses. Georgia Power crews headed to the state Thursday morning to attempt to restore power for thousands of Louisiana residents. There were nearly 470,000 homes and businesses without power as of Thursday morning.
“We help each other out. Several utility companies came to help us out after Hurricane Irma in 2017, and we’re going to go help them now,” Georgia Power spokesperson Allison Gregorie told Channel 2 Action News.
As the aftermath of Laura became clear Thursday morning, several flocked to Twitter to share some of the damage and loss they experienced overnight.
A large chemical fire reportedly happened Thursday morning in Lake Charles, Louisiana, but crews were having challenges accessing the scene.
There were some residents who did not experience much damage, but instead just saw heavy storms and branches blow throughout their neighborhoods.
Forecasters expect Laura to weaken but cause widespread flash flooding in states far from the coast. An atypical tropical storm warning was issued as far north as Little Rock, Arkansas, where forecasters expected gusts of 50 mph and a deluge of rain through Friday. After turning eastward and arriving to the Atlantic Ocean, it could once more become a tropical storm, threatening the Northeast.
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