ferocious Winds and Rising Seawater and torrential Rains marked the arrival of the calamitous hurricane ‘Laura’ over southwestern Louisiana, near the Texas border in the United States. After being intensified to a category 4 storm, Laura caused a landfall on Wednesday, after midnight, local time.
Hurricane Laura packed winds of 150 mph (250 kph) in a small town of Louisiana, known as Cameron. Social Media surfaced with videos of heavy rains blowing out windows, debris, and battering a tall building. Roughly 45 miles or 72 kilometers north from the place where the hurricane caused the landfall. The largest amount of damage was seen at a hospital, in Lake Charles.
Hurricane Laura caused many people to evacuate and leave their homes. Though the ongoing pandemic of COVID 19 slowed down the evacuation process while following the social distancing norms, complicated housing arrangements. The hurricane has been categorized as an ‘unsurvivable storm’ by the National Hurricane Center (USA).
Origin
Hurricane Laura was born in South Western Louisiana near the Texas border. It is a category 5 strength, which arrived on the Gulf Coast, just east of Texas-Louisiana border.
Path
Hurricane Laura is moving northwest at 15 mph(24 kph). The hurricane might take a turn, towards the north-northwest and north tonight (local time), a northward advancement on Thursday and northeastward to east-northeastward on Thursday night and Friday.
Laura is expected to approach southwest Lousiana and upper Texas this evening while moving inland tonight, meaning the internal parts of these two states are at high risk. Over the next few days, Louisiana, Arkansas, and mid- Mississippi Valley are expected to get affected.
Speed
Hurricane Laura is a category 4 strength on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Which proves it is extremely dangerous. Reports from Air Force Reserve say that hurricane hunter aircraft indicate that the maximum sustained winds have increased to nearly 150 mph (241 kph) with higher gusts of wind.
Damage
Lake Charles
Damage in Baton Rouge Area
Mandatory Evacuation in some parts of Louisiana
Tips to Survive a Hurricane
1. Evacuate if it feels unsafe to stay inside your home. Cooperate with the officials until you reach your evacuation center safely.
If you’re staying at home:
1. Use a portable radio to listen to important storm updates, and all other necessary information about the storm path, speed, and casualties.
2. Under no circumstances should you leave your house during a storm. Leave only when you’re 100% certain the storm and its side effects have passed away.
3. In case of a power outage, keep the refrigerator door closed to delay the spoilage of the food inside.
4. In case you need to use a portable generator, follow all of the manufacturer instructions step by step. To prevent another calamity, or avoid getting a shock, one needs to make sure that the portable generators are grounded firmly.
5. If you’re using a portable generator, make sure you have a working CO detector, since power generators produce Carbon Monoxide which is a very fatal gas.
