U.S. President Barack Obama declared a state of major disaster for Louisiana on Sunday after heavy rains and substantial flooding claimed upwards of 11 lives. The count of those missing is still unknown, and the flood has been deemed “the worst natural disaster to strike the U.S. since Superstorm Sandy.” But the national response to the ongoing disaster has been minimal, especially compared to Hurricane Katrina and Superstorm Sandy.
Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has tweeted her support for those affected while GOP nominee Donald Trump has remained silent. Liz Spayde, public editor of The New York Times acknowledged that the publication’s coverage of the disaster has been “weak.” “The Times is not the only news organization being criticized for doing too little too late on the floods,” she wrote. “Even so, from my scanning of the media’s reactions, the Times’s performance seems particularly weak.”
The total effects of the flooding in Louisiana are still not very well known. Two years ago, the state lost its signature boot shape due to coastal erosion, climate change, and oil and gas production that have caused it to have a drastically fragmented shape. Matter re-drew the map of Louisiana, and the results are jarring.
Worst of all, the forecast for Louisiana is more rain. The National Weather Service warned Thursday that heavy rains could produce more floods and flash flooding in parts of the state. "The problem is there is nowhere for the water to run off. In the last couple of days, we've had to reissue flash flood warnings in areas that had been showing improvement," NWS meteorologist Roger Erickson told NBC.
A majority of Louisiana has seen at least one foot of rain since Friday, with some areas getting as much as 30 inches, according to NWS. If you needed any more confirmation that the U.S. is experiencing a crisis caused by climate change, look no further than these photos. To help those in need, you can donate to the Red Cross’ efforts at redcross.org, or by texting “LAFLOODS” to 90999.
