Young Professionals Group 2021 Info

COVER STORY FALL 2020 REBUILDING SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA STRONGER AFTER HURRICANES LAURA & DELTA BY ERIKA WALTER, COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER 2020 ,WESTLAKE

Unless you have hid under a rock this Fall, you know that mother nature and the 2020 Hurricane Season have dealt a onetwo punch to much of our state, especially the communities of Southwest Louisiana.

On August 27, Hurricane Laura made landfall in Cameron, Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane, with wind speeds recorded up to 150 mph. The worst hurricane Louisiana has seen in 150 years, Laura ripped through the Southwest region of our state, leaving hundreds of thousands of our friends, family, neighbors, and coworkers displaced or trapped in their homes, and without power or water. Countless homes, schools, churches, critical infrastructure and businesses were also damaged or completely destroyed.

“Contractors and Louisianans in general are very well prepared, but despite any level of preparedness, there’s nothing you can do when mother nature comes with that amount of fury,” says David Helveston, president and CEO of ABC Pelican.

ABC Pelican’s Southwest Training Center was a victim of that fury. The lab and classroom building took significant damage to the roof which led to interior rain damage. The welding shop lost its bay doors and ventilation system. The administration building received minor damage to roof, windows, and doors. The campus received wind damage to fences, gates, covered walkways, and awnings. The electrical panel and wiring for the school was heavily damaged and must be replaced.

A mere six weeks later, Hurricane Delta made landfall just 13 miles east of the location Hurricane Laura made landfall in Creole, Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane, with wind speeds of 75 mph. Delta created an insult to injury scenario for a community that was just starting to get back on their feet. Countless blue tarps and piles of debris were scattered across cities and water flooded roadways and homes.

Unfortunately, Delta brought the Southwest Training Center even more damages to the roof of the lab classroom building.

ABC Pelican staff lost their roofs, portions of their homes and their possessions due to winds and flooding brought on by both storms. Staffs’ shops, sheds, storage buildings and barns were wiped out. Their vehicles damaged by flying debris. Numerous trees and fences were downed on their properties.

Blaise Theard, ABC Pelican’s Workforce Development Specialist who lives in Calcasieu Parish, recalled preparing for both storms as very exhausting and stressful.

“I’ll never forget the feeling of driving away from our property with the unknown of what it will look like when we return,” said Theard. “Traveling hours away and staying at a hotel that is packed with other evacuees. Everyone discussing what part of town they live in, mutual friends, and then wishing each other the best as the storm approaches.”

“Watching the storm unfold was a stressful situation as well,” Theard continued. “As you’re watching the wind rip buildings apart live on TV, you can only wonder the condition of your personal property and possessions. As the storm moves on and daylight arrives, it starts to set in that life will be drastically different when you return home.”

Theard recounted the journey home from both storms, describing the drives as hectic. “You are hundreds of miles from home and see the first signs of the storm damage, which goes to show the magnitude of the storms. You’re approaching home and knots are forming in your stomach. You feel like you prepared yourself for what you are about to see, and the pictures do not do it justice. Finally seeing the level of devastation to our property is just a surreal feeling. It’s a feeling I’ll never forget.”

As is the #LouisianaStrong way, the SWLA community began the road to recovery.

“The first priority was making the household livable and

safe for other family members to return home,” Theard said. “The first few days were a bit chaotic with no real idea of where to start the cleanup. Neighbors were on each other’s roof helping to cover with tarps; removing debris from ditches to prevent backing up and flooding, cleaning up yards full of trees, shingles, sheet metal, fencing, and numerous other forms of debris. Each day was filled with many tasks. The days and the weeks blended together.”

Theard commended the SWLA community for stepping up and helping one another.

“Our community has shown that even at our weakest moment, we will only bounce back stronger,” said Theard. In the aftermath of the storms, ABC Pelican worked with our Southwest staff to identify how we can best help– which is when we turned to our members. Because we support one another in times of need, we put together a fundraiser for our staff and the community of Southwest Louisiana. We sold hundreds of #LouisianaStrong UV Fishing Shirts and raised approximately $10,000, all thanks to the incredible support of our members. It is important to note that at the time of publication and due to damages sustained by Hurricane Laura and Hurricane Delta, the Southwest Training Center is closed as we repair the facilities. Our plans and objectives are to have the facilities up and running as quickly and safely as possible so we can get back to serving the current and future generations of craft professionals. These are the crafts professionals that will help rebuild our industry and our communities in Southwest Louisiana.

In the preparation for and aftermath of these two storms, we have witnessed our members, staff and craft students shine in the areas of preparation, planning, serving, giving and downright grit. We have seen #LouisianaStrong at its finest over and over in Southwest Louisiana in the past few months, and this #LouisianaStrong mentality is what will help us rebuild tougher than ever. This is the construction industry, so building and rebuilding is what we do best.

And we will do just that, brick by brick.

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