Gremillion: Finding adequate shelter for Hurricane Ida victims top issue

Published 10:01 pm Thursday, September 2, 2021

While Hurricane Laura impacted only a few Southwest Louisiana parishes, Hurricane Ida’s landfall Sunday caused damage to at least a dozen Southeast Louisiana parishes, according to Calcasieu Parish Office of Emergency Preparedness Director Dick Gremillion.

Gremillion told police jurors Thursday that finding adequate shelter for Hurricane Ida victims is the top issue. Residents who chose to ride out the storm are now having to be evacuated because of power and water outages, he said.

“Last I heard, they were looking at shelters potentially even out of state,” Gremillion said.

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Communication is another post-Ida issue, with cell phone service down, and about one-third of the state’s public safety radio system out of service, Gremillion said..

“We went through this as well,” he said of Hurricane Laura’s aftermath. “You just kind of search around until you find a signal.”

Gremillion said a lack of fuel is another issue for residents and public safety officials impacted by Ida. Ice is also another needed resource, which means there are many hurricane-impacted residents still at their homes, he said.

Gremillion said the Ward 6 Fire Department has sent two fire trucks to go Galliano in Lafourche Parish. He said two Calcasieu Office of Emergency Preparedness staff were sent along with them to assess the damage. He said Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes are the most accessible for emergency response.