With another cleanup effort underway, death toll rises in wake of Hurricane Delta
By
Maria Antonieta Valery Gill, AccuWeather Staff Writer
Published Oct 13, 2020 5:31 PM EDT
Southwest Louisiana has been hammered by back-to-back hurricanes, but some people say they’re still finding reasons to feel grateful.
Days after Hurricane Delta, the 10th tropical storm to strike the United States this season, made landfall Friday near Creole, Louisiana, just about 13 miles from where Laura hit less than two months prior, the death toll has risen to at least four, according to officials.
And on Tuesday, more than 110,000 customers, mostly in Louisiana, remained without power, a day after the AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature soared to 97 degrees in Lake Charles, Louisiana -- one of the hardest-hit spots.
As the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season continues to cause havoc across the southeastern coast of the U.S., many communities in Louisiana continue to struggle as two back-to-back hurricanes in a little over six weeks have left them in complete devastation.
People in the worst-hit communities again began a massive cleanup effort, which, in some cases, still wasn't finished from the previous hurricane.
With the help of the Louisiana National Guard and volunteers from across the country, members of the most affected areas, including that of Lake Charles, are collaborating to reconstruct their communities. They are helping out by handing out water, food and ice. Some volunteers are also placing tarps on damaged homes to help prevent any further destruction.
“This is the most wonderful thing that everybody is helping everybody,” Janice Meaux, a resident of Lake Charles, told AccuWeather National Reporter Bill Wadell.
Bristle Simon, also a resident of Lake Charles, is joining the reconstruction efforts and doing everything she can to restore her community and help everyone in need.
“We are so grateful and we really appreciate them coming out. We really appreciate them helping everybody in Louisiana,” Simon said.
Local chefs are also contributing, as they are cooking in trailers, offering meals to thousands of families who have had no access to electricity or food.
For some families, however, the loss was beyond that of electricity and food, as two deaths were confirmed by the Louisiana Health Department on Sunday. An 86-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman both lost their lives in fires caused by appliances that were damaged by the hurricane.
“This is an incredibly unfortunate loss of life,” Louisiana State Fire Marshal Chief H. “Butch” Browning said in a statement. “We want all Louisianans to not only take the generator safety tips we’ve been sharing very seriously, but also remember simple fire safety tips that we promote often, especially ‘get out, stay out.’”
Off the coast of the Florida Panhandle, two other fatalities were blamed on the rough surf stirred up by Hurricane Delta.
The National Weather Service said a 49-year-old man got caught in a rip current and drowned east of Pensacola Beach, Florida, on Friday.
The second fatality in the Gulf of Mexico occurred the next day.
"A 19-year old Illinois tourist drowned Saturday after being caught in a rip current in the Gulf of Mexico off Scenic Highway 98 in Destin," the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
Damage caused by Hurricane Delta is seen from above in aerial footage taken over the weekend. (American Red Cross)
(American Red Cross)
To help these families and thousands of others who lost everything, the American Red Cross sent some 720 trained disaster workers to support shelters and emergency relief efforts either on site or virtually. They are working with the local authorities and volunteers to make sure that everyone has a safe place to stay, food to eat, as well as emotional support and any assistance that they might need as they go through this tragedy.
So far, the humanitarian non-profit, along with their partners, have provided a safe refuge to 693,600 people in areas affected by Laura and Delta. On Sunday alone, they offered refuge to 9,300 people who lost their homes after Delta made landfall on Friday. In addition, volunteers are also providing individual care contacts, to help anyone with medical or disability needs, as well as providing emotional support to those affected during this challenging time.
Although the non-profit is doing everything within its reach, officials with the organization emphasized the importance of teamwork and group effort during this current environment. It is thanks to the volunteers and other partner organizations that they have managed to help bring relief to a large scale of people.
Donations through the Red Cross website also make these recovery efforts possible. Anyone who is interested in making a $10 donation to Delta recovery efforts can do so by visiting redcross.org, by calling 800-RED-CROSS or texting the word DELTA to 90999. These donations will go toward food, shelter, relief supplies, emotional support, and other assistance for those who are affected by the hurricanes.
Another organization that is taking in monetary donations is United Way of Southwest Louisiana. Those who are interested in donating can do so by visiting unitedwayswla.org/Donate or by texting SWLASTRONG to 40403. Donations through Amazon are also accepted. People can purchase any of the listed items on the organization's Amazon page, which will go directly to those in need.
In addition, the Salvation Army is also receiving donations through their site, which will be used to purchase food and other supplies for the most affected communities. With a donation of $10, they are able to feed one person for one day.
Those considering lending a helping hand to survivors of the back-to-back storms can use tools like Charity Navigator, CharityWatch, or GuideStar to look for charities to support.
Additional reporting by Bill Wadell.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo
News / Hurricane
With another cleanup effort underway, death toll rises in wake of Hurricane Delta
By Maria Antonieta Valery Gill, AccuWeather Staff Writer
Published Oct 13, 2020 5:31 PM EDT
Southwest Louisiana has been hammered by back-to-back hurricanes, but some people say they’re still finding reasons to feel grateful.
Days after Hurricane Delta, the 10th tropical storm to strike the United States this season, made landfall Friday near Creole, Louisiana, just about 13 miles from where Laura hit less than two months prior, the death toll has risen to at least four, according to officials.
And on Tuesday, more than 110,000 customers, mostly in Louisiana, remained without power, a day after the AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature soared to 97 degrees in Lake Charles, Louisiana -- one of the hardest-hit spots.
As the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season continues to cause havoc across the southeastern coast of the U.S., many communities in Louisiana continue to struggle as two back-to-back hurricanes in a little over six weeks have left them in complete devastation.
People in the worst-hit communities again began a massive cleanup effort, which, in some cases, still wasn't finished from the previous hurricane.
With the help of the Louisiana National Guard and volunteers from across the country, members of the most affected areas, including that of Lake Charles, are collaborating to reconstruct their communities. They are helping out by handing out water, food and ice. Some volunteers are also placing tarps on damaged homes to help prevent any further destruction.
“This is the most wonderful thing that everybody is helping everybody,” Janice Meaux, a resident of Lake Charles, told AccuWeather National Reporter Bill Wadell.
Bristle Simon, also a resident of Lake Charles, is joining the reconstruction efforts and doing everything she can to restore her community and help everyone in need.
“We are so grateful and we really appreciate them coming out. We really appreciate them helping everybody in Louisiana,” Simon said.
Local chefs are also contributing, as they are cooking in trailers, offering meals to thousands of families who have had no access to electricity or food.
For some families, however, the loss was beyond that of electricity and food, as two deaths were confirmed by the Louisiana Health Department on Sunday. An 86-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman both lost their lives in fires caused by appliances that were damaged by the hurricane.
“This is an incredibly unfortunate loss of life,” Louisiana State Fire Marshal Chief H. “Butch” Browning said in a statement. “We want all Louisianans to not only take the generator safety tips we’ve been sharing very seriously, but also remember simple fire safety tips that we promote often, especially ‘get out, stay out.’”
Off the coast of the Florida Panhandle, two other fatalities were blamed on the rough surf stirred up by Hurricane Delta.
The National Weather Service said a 49-year-old man got caught in a rip current and drowned east of Pensacola Beach, Florida, on Friday.
The second fatality in the Gulf of Mexico occurred the next day.
"A 19-year old Illinois tourist drowned Saturday after being caught in a rip current in the Gulf of Mexico off Scenic Highway 98 in Destin," the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office said in a statement.
Damage caused by Hurricane Delta is seen from above in aerial footage taken over the weekend. (American Red Cross)
To help these families and thousands of others who lost everything, the American Red Cross sent some 720 trained disaster workers to support shelters and emergency relief efforts either on site or virtually. They are working with the local authorities and volunteers to make sure that everyone has a safe place to stay, food to eat, as well as emotional support and any assistance that they might need as they go through this tragedy.
So far, the humanitarian non-profit, along with their partners, have provided a safe refuge to 693,600 people in areas affected by Laura and Delta. On Sunday alone, they offered refuge to 9,300 people who lost their homes after Delta made landfall on Friday. In addition, volunteers are also providing individual care contacts, to help anyone with medical or disability needs, as well as providing emotional support to those affected during this challenging time.
Although the non-profit is doing everything within its reach, officials with the organization emphasized the importance of teamwork and group effort during this current environment. It is thanks to the volunteers and other partner organizations that they have managed to help bring relief to a large scale of people.
Donations through the Red Cross website also make these recovery efforts possible. Anyone who is interested in making a $10 donation to Delta recovery efforts can do so by visiting redcross.org, by calling 800-RED-CROSS or texting the word DELTA to 90999. These donations will go toward food, shelter, relief supplies, emotional support, and other assistance for those who are affected by the hurricanes.
Another organization that is taking in monetary donations is United Way of Southwest Louisiana. Those who are interested in donating can do so by visiting unitedwayswla.org/Donate or by texting SWLASTRONG to 40403. Donations through Amazon are also accepted. People can purchase any of the listed items on the organization's Amazon page, which will go directly to those in need.
In addition, the Salvation Army is also receiving donations through their site, which will be used to purchase food and other supplies for the most affected communities. With a donation of $10, they are able to feed one person for one day.
Those considering lending a helping hand to survivors of the back-to-back storms can use tools like Charity Navigator, CharityWatch, or GuideStar to look for charities to support.
Additional reporting by Bill Wadell.
Related:
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo