After President Obama visited Louisiana, officials say he left with a better understanding of this 1,000 year flood. Richard Carbo with the office of the governor says while seeing the devastation first-hand is important, he doesn’t want to discredit what the federal government has provided to Louisiana…:
CUT 7 (08) “weeks ago”
Over 115-thousand south Louisiana residents have signed up federal disaster assistance.

Republican US Senator Bill Cassidy says it’s good that Mr. Obama’s visit shined a national spotlight on this disaster, but now we need to see the follow through….:
Cut 13 (09) “projects”
Cassidy says Congress will vote on additional funding for Louisiana when they convene for the fall session after Labor Day.

First Lady Donna Edwards is working with the Louisiana School Board Association to assist flood damaged schools with repairs and supplies. LSBA Executive Director Scott Richard says at this point, about 20 schools were severely damaged during the rainstorm…:
cut 4 (10) “Lafayette Parish”
Visit the LSBA Fund for Restoring Schools GoFundMe page to donate.

The National Hurricane Center is keeping its eye on three tropical systems in the Atlantic, and one of them has the potential of getting into the Gulf of Mexico. Forecasters say the disturbance called Invest 99 is worth watching.

The Louisiana School Board Association is encouraging people to donate to aid flood damaged schools. Emelie Gunn has more…

CUT 1 (30) “I’m Emelie Gunn”

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Governor John Bel Edwards gave President Obama a list of requests that the state needs in order to recover from the Great Flood of 2016…

Cut 2 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

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Debris cleanup in flooded neighborhoods should move more quickly now because of an order signed by the Department of Environmental Quality. Halen Doughty has more…

Cut 3 (30) “I’m Halen Doughty”

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First Lady Donna Edwards is working with the Louisiana School Board Association to assist flood damaged schools with repairs and supplies. LSBA Executive Director Scott Richard says at this point, about 20 schools were severely damaged during the rainstorm…

cut 4  (10)  “Lafayette Parish”

Visit the LSBA Fund for Restoring Schools GoFundMe page to donate. Richard says mold in the schools is an issue but the biggest problem is teachers and school employees are struggling to get back up and running when it comes to an actual place to live. He says they created the campaign to help local school districts.

Cut 5  (11)  “basic supplies”

The East Baton Rouge School System and Central Community Schools are set to resume classes after September 6^th, but Livingston Parish has not made a decision yet. Richard says they’ve raised right about 8-thousand dollars over the last few days. He says it’s unfortunate that we’re losing instructional time but they understand how many families have been affected.

Cut 6 (10) “learning environment”

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After President Obama visited Louisiana, he left with a better understanding of this 1,000 year flood and a letter from Governor John Bel Edwards asking for help. The Governor’s Communications Director, Richard Carbo, says while seeing the devastation first-hand is important, he doesn’t want to discredit what the federal government has provided to Louisiana.

CUT 7 (08)  “weeks ago”

Carbo says Governor Edwards gave the President of a list of aid requests that includes assistance for flood victims and money to improve flood protection along the Comite River. He says Louisiana is also looking to reduce the costs the state will have to absorb for responding to the disaster.

Cut 8 (08) “the cost” 

Over 115-thousand south Louisiana residents have signed up federal disaster assistance. Many of these storms victims had significant damage to their home and do not have flood insurance. Carbo says the President’s visit is part of the dialogue on how to help these individuals out.

Cut 9 (08)  “be available”

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Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Chuck Carr Brown signs an emergency order that’s designed to expedite the process of cleaning up debris in flooded neighborhoods in the 20-parish area affected by the recent severe weather. DEQ spokesperson Greg Langley says the order expands the range of debris that can be accepted by certain landfills.

Cut 10 (09) “like that”

The emergency order ends September 30. The debris removal process has started in some areas. Langley says many people also lost appliances like refrigerators and washing machines and he explains how they will be handled.

cut 11 (08) “disposed of”

This is the first time since Hurricane Katrina that DEQ has expanded what is allowed in landfills. Langley says they hope that if there are more places to take debris, it will speed up the cleanup process before the debris becomes a health hazard.

cut 12 (10) “unhealthy”

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Many are hoping that President Obama’s visit to Baton Rouge will help Louisiana get more federal funding quickly. Republican US Senator Bill Cassidy says it’s good that the visit shined a national spotlight on this disaster, but now we need to see the follow through.

Cut 13 (09) “projects”

Cassidy says Congress will vote on additional funding for Louisiana when they convene for the fall session after Labor Day. He says what they need now is an exact dollar amount from the state.

cut 14 (08)  “they will”

The Governor’s Office hopes to have those dollar figures by the beginning of September. Cassidy says there have been thousands of people across the country affected by natural disasters, and Congress wants to help them all.

Cut 15 (07) “disease”

President Barack Obama spent the day touring a flood damage neighborhood in East Baton Rouge parish that were inundated by the flood waters. In a press conference, the President shared the heartwarming stories he heard of neighbors helping neighbors. He says Louisiana will have all the federal support it needs for as long as it takes.

cut 15 (11) “are rebuilt”

He says FEMA is working around the clock to find temporary housing for those that have been displaced.

Forecasters are monitoring three storms in the Atlantic, and one of them could pose a threat to Louisiana. State climatologist Barry Keim says the storm appears to be heading over Puerto Rico and the Bahamas, but it is possible that Invest 99 could move into the Gulf.

Cut 13 (09)  “some watching” 

Former Governor Kathleen Blanco is concerned the lack of housing for flood victims could result in people moving out of the state to live with family members elsewhere. She says even those with flood insurance are struggling.

cut 10 (11)  “a shock”

Blanco says this will not be an overnight recovery and rebuilding will cost billions of dollars.

More than 5-thousand online fundraising campaigns have been set up on GoFundMe to help flood victims in Louisiana. GoFundMe CEO, Rob Solomon says First Lady Donna Edwards is helping to raise money for teachers who lost everything in their classrooms. He also says celebrities, like the Voice’s Meg Linsey, have created GoFundMe campaigns.

CUT 8 (10) “each other” 

President Barack Obama is expected to arrive in Baton Rouge at this hour. The President is expected to tour flooded areas of the Capital City to see the flood damage first hand. UL-Lafayette political science professor Pearson Cross says the Commander in Chief could also play a vital role in getting more federal aid to Louisiana.

Congressman Garrett Graves says in order for our community to recover there needs to be an assistance package to help those affected. But he admits it may be difficult to get a financial aid package approved because three members of Louisiana’s congressional delegation voted against a Hurricane Sandy relief package. The congressman plans to speak to the president today about financial aid for flood victims, local businesses, schools, plus flood protection from the area.

Cut 15 (05) “watershed”

Graves says they are working on legislation that could help homeowners who lost everything in the flood.

Professionals in Louisiana’s film industry are available to help in the recovery process from the historic flood. President of Film Production Capital, Will French, says the state’s film industry is down 85-percent, which means carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and other skilled workers are unemployed.

CUT 3 (10)  “rebuilding process”

French says this is a way to help both flood victims and film industry workers.

Over 5-thousand GoFundMe campaigns have been created to aid victims of this historic flooding raising more than six million dollars. CEO of GoFundMe Rob Solomon says money is being donated from all around the country and the world. He says this is the largest U.S. natural disaster seen on the GoFundMe platform.

CUT 6 (08) “earthquakes”

The Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness says flood victims are still needing volunteers to help gut their homes. Mike Steele with GOHSEP says visit volunteer-louisiana-dot-gov if you want to help. He says many people whose homes were damaged are elderly and not able to make repairs on their own.

Cut 11 (09) “large area.”

Steele says the Great Flood of 2016 is similar to what was seen in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

LSU Economist Jim Richardson predicts it could take at least one year for southern Louisiana to recover from the historic flooding. Richardson says in the short-term, the flooding could boost the economy with flood victims purchasing new furniture, flooring, and sheet-rock. He says housing is the biggest issue for those who lost their homes..
Cut 13 (10) “availability”

 
Flood victims who have been displaced may have trouble finding a new home. Don Molino has more…
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The LSU AgCenter estimates the heavy rains that caused the Great Flood of 2016 will cost Louisiana at least 110 million dollars. Soybeans will likely take the biggest hit with yield losses expected to be nearly 46 million dollars. It’s not clear at this time how many livestock deaths were caused by the flooding. The flooding will cost the rice industry about 33 million dollars in yield losses.

LSU Economist Jim Richardson estimates it will take at least one year to recover from the historic floods. Richardson says many victims of the flooding did not have flood insurance, which could possibly force some people to go into debt to restore their home.
Cut 14 (10) “be in”

Richardson says Livingston Parish, which was the hardest hit , may need a little longer to get back to some kind of normalcy.

The Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness says people are still needed to help flood victims clean our their waterlogged homes. Mike Steele with GOHSEP says until the major cleanup inside is complete, people cannot start to rebuild.
Cut 9 (08) “urgent need.”

Anyone who wants to help can sign up at VolunteerLouisiana.gov.

 
About 60-thousand homes received water damage during the Great Flood of 2016, according to state officials. Greater Baton Rouge Association of Realtors President Tiffany Palmer says the already short supply of homes has declined as many were flooded or taken off the market. She says people looking to buy new homes may not be able to find their dream home, because of the limited availability.
CUT 5 (09) “perfect one”

The evacuation order for the town of Gueydan (GAY-dahn) in Vermillion Parish has been lifted. Vermilion Emergency Preparedness director Rebecca Broussard says they avoided major flooding because of the Louisiana National Guard.
CUT 6 (09) “in that area”

Broussard says some homes in Vermilion Parish had water up to the roof, and several roads are still underwater.

LSU Economist Jim Richardson estimates it will take at least a year to recover from the historic flood damage. Jeff Palermo has more…

CUT 2 (30) “I’m Jeff Palermo”

Entergy announces power has been restored to all the homes that can safely receive it. They say about 2-thousand customers are still without power because of extensive flood damage to their homes. Overall, over 32-thousand Entergy customers were affected by the historic flooding.

Vermilion parish is beginning to enter the recovery phase of their flood relief efforts. Emergency Preparedness director, Rebecca Broussard says some homes in Vermilion Parish had water up to the roof, and several roads are still underwater. She says usually flooding in Vermilion is the result of storm surge from hurricanes, but that’s not the case this time.

CUT 8 (07) “insurance” 

She says 11-hundred homes in the parish flooded.

The Amite River, which contributed to much of the flooding in southeast Louisiana, should finally fall below flood stage today. Freddie Zeigler, with the National Weather Service in Slidell, says the Amite is still above flood stage at French Settlement in Livingston Parish, but that should change by tomorrow

cut 15 (05) “four-point-four”

Zeigler says unfortunately the flood threat is not over yet, as backwater remains a problem in some areas.

It’s estimated it will take at least one year to recover from the historic floods. That’s according to LSU Economist Jim Richardson who says Livingston Parish, which was the hardest hit, will need a while to get back to some kind of normalcy. He expects big box companies should be back on their feet quickly, but it could take smaller businesses longer.
cut 12 (10) “business loans”

The Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness says help is still needed to get the muck out of flood victims homes. Mike Steele with GOHSEP says volunteers can sign up at volunteer-louisiana-dot-gov. He says the damage from this flood is similar to what was seen after Hurricane Katrina.
cut 10 (10) “deal with”

State officals estimate about 60-thousand homes were flooded and many displaced residents are looking for new places to live. Greater Baton Rouge Association of Realtors president Tiffany Palmer says there aren’t many homes left, especially when it comes to apartments.
CUT 3 (09) “and Southern”

Palmer says she doesn’t expect people to flee the area completely, but many will look for homes in areas that did not flood.

The evacuation order for the Vermilion Parish town of Gueydan (GAY-dahn) has been lifted. The order was issued when the levee along Hwy 713 was breached on Wednesday but was contained Sunday when 4-thousand pound sandbags were placed along the levee. Vermilion Emergency Preparedness director Rebecca Broussard says they still had over 11-hundred homes flooded throughout the parish.
CUT 7 (07) “a process”