A No-Name Storm Leaves Broken Lives Behind

Cherie Souths from Baton Rouge had floodwaters devastate her home. She evacuated to her mother’s home, where the next day they had to flee the flood waters once again.
Now, with all her worldly possessions destroyed and no family, this woman stopped eating and drinking, and had been sleeping in her car for nearly a week.
She had struggled so hard for so long, her arms were bruised terribly, and open wounds were visible. She had resigned to giving up on life.
She described the men who showed up to her home to help her recover as “Angels”.

Independence, Louisiana – The storm that crashed into Louisiana in August didn’t have a name. That may be fitting as many of its victims remain faceless to the rest of the nation.

The worst natural disaster since Superstorm Sandy has gained little attention from the nation. Nameless victims stare off in a gaze that is reminiscent of a footage of hurricane survivors, and tornado victims.

The scope of devastation is astounding.

The hour long drive from Independence to Baton Rouge reveals many areas of devastation, where piles of debris, gutted from the homes of victims, line the roadways. These ‘Miles of Piles’ are the lives of victims, thrown out in an effort to rebuild and move forward.

In Independence, the city council is struggling with restoring some utilities, as well as addressing how to amend ordinances to allow things like FEMA mobile home units in so that residents can be near, and work on their homes. This shelter at home policy has been initiated by the governor of Louisiana.

In Baton Rouge, there are pockets where aid has yet to arrive.

New Sharon Fire & Rescue made the trip to flood stricken Independence, Louisiana on August 25th. The team left Mahaska County around 6pm, traveling all night after having worked their regular jobs all day.

New Sharon Fire was once again joining forces with their friends of Biloxi, Mississippi. The two departments have worked many natural disasters, including the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina 11 years ago and Superstorm Sandy in New York.

Their calling is to first reach out to the first responders who are taking care of their communities. Many of those first responders have suffered damage to their homes, but are unable to begin their recovery because they are helping their community.

Once on the scene in Louisiana, there was no time to rest. The team was directed to a campground where some cabins needed to be gutted. The hope was that those structures could be easily repaired to allow temporary housing of displaced residents.

Brenda Mashon watched the waters rise into their home as her husband was out saving others from flood waters. Her husband serves on the state rescue squad, and for days he worked to rescue people from the flood waters, and pull victims from those waters as well.

Mushon sent photos of their home, inundated with the flood waters to her husband, but the gravity of the situation didn’t hit him until he finally had a chance to return home.

There, he found his home in utter ruin, and his vehicles destroyed. The couple, who made their way out on a 4-wheeler and by foot was now facing the task of gutting their home, and throwing it in a dumpster.

All of this by themselves, in a rural potion of the state, until two teams from Biloxi and New Sharon pulled up their drive.

The relief on the face of this first responder was immediately apparent.

Geraldine Skinner of Independence, Louisiana has lived on her property for 81 years. During those years, she has never witnessed anything like the flood that impacted her home.

The crews from Biloxi and New Sharon quickly got to work removing water soaked furniture, and saturated walls. Insulation is pulled from the walls to allow the home to dry more quickly, and minimize the mold impact to the structure.

The team also responded to needs for assistance in Baton Rouge, where flood waters submerged entire homes and neighborhoods.

There, pockets of individuals are still awaiting help. The elderly, some without family, sat silently on a chair outside their homes, working as their bodies allowed them to.

Cherie Souths lives by herself in a flooded portion of Baton Rouge. The two departments rolled up to her home. “An answer to a prayer. A miracle”, said Souths.

Souths admits she was getting ready to give up on life. She hadn’t eaten or drank anything for two days. After the flood, she had been sleeping in her car.

With the help of Biloxi and New Sharon, the home was gutted, a major first step in helping a homeowner move on with the road to recovery.

The skills the two fire departments bring to the table helps individuals understand the process. That process is understanding that nearly anything that was under water will need to go.

That is difficult for homeowners to come to terms with. For them, those items are all they have worked their entire lives for.

Homeowners often are seen looking off in a daze or trance, as the fatigue and reality of the situation hits them. That same look is often seen on the faces of victims in war torn areas of the world.

As the team finishes gutting the home, once again that person often faces the future of moving forward by themselves.

Before the flooding, Baton Rouge was on the verge of pulling itself apart, after two shootings in the community made their way onto the national stage.

Carrie Russ, an African-American resident of Baton Rouge, is a flood victim who spoke about her community and the impact of the flood.

“Baton Rouge is a lovely, friendly city. All of the people, they are just friendly, caring, warm people. Recent events brought a darkness in our city, threatening to destroy us and tear us apart”, said Russ.

Russ said those shootings “were like a festering wound”.

“This flood, as devastating as it is, has brought us back together, because I watched us reach our hand across the races to help each other, and to love again.”

New Sharon Fire’s Josh Crouse struggles with this large piece of flooring ripped out of a flood damaged home.

Carrie Russ hugs one of the Biloxi team members as they work on gutting her home that suffered flood damage.

New Sharon Fire’s Dustin Briggs helps get a load of soaked wood and home material to the curb in Baton Rouge.

New Sharon Fire Chief Steve Gerard works on clearing flood soaked material from a home in Baton Rouge.

A member of Biloxi Fire throws water damaged material onto the ever growing mounds of debris that have sprung up around Baton Rouge.