Water is receding in Jeff Davis Parish, albeit “very, very slowly,” Sheriff Ivy Woods said Wednesday.

“The levees are holding, but there’s still a lot of flooding in low-lying areas,” he said.

The parish remains in a state of emergency, although the parish has taken down its command post.

Woods said a flyover of the flooding revealed “there’s lot of water still out there — more than some people can imagine.”

La. 26 remains open, but U.S. 90 is still closed, he said.

Lake Arthur Police Chief Cheryl Vincent said it will take days before some roads are passable.

“One of the places we checked was down half an inch,” she said. “It’s on the upside, but it’s going to take a while to go down enough for water to be off the streets.”

Vincent said Pleasant Street, McClure Street and parts of Grand Avenue remain flooded.

“The water is high, but at least it’s not coming up,” she said.

Vincent said drivers should not go around barricaded areas because driving through flooded roadways could cause wakes and damage nearby homes.

Mayor Robbie Bertrand said he hopes that sometime today residents will start seeing water receding at a faster rate so they can start getting things back to normal.

• Staff Writers John Guidroz, Johnathan Manning and Natalie Stewart contributed to this report.

(Doris Maricle / American Press)