M THE GREAT Loyola University • New Orleans • Volume 95 • Issue 1
THE MAROON
AUGUST 26, 2016
Loyola student organizations provide relief to flood victims By R. Gage Counts rgcounts@loyno.edu @countsingsheep
Photo Courtesy of AP Exchange / Design by Naasha Dotiwala
This aerial image shows flooded areas in Denham Springs, Louisiana, Saturday, Aug. 13, 2016. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards says more than 1,000 people in south Louisiana have been rescued from homes, vehicles and even clinging to trees as a slow-moving storm hammers the state with flooding.
By Haley Pegg hapegg@loyno.edu
Michele Ellis, nursing professor, awoke Sunday morning to the sound of helicopters and an airboat rescuing neighbors on her flooded street in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Ellis has been a nursing professor for 12 years, and will be starting her first semester teaching at Loyola this fall. The home she shares with her husband was covered in about eight inches of water in the floods. The subdivision in which Ellis lives had never flooded before. “People are holding up. There’s nothing more you can do,” Ellis said. In some of the most devastating flooding in Louisiana history, some civilians have lost everything. The floods killed at least 13 people and damaged at least 40,000 homes. Within 48 hours, up to two feet of rain had covered areas of southern Louisiana. 106,000 people have registered for federal disaster aid at this point. Warren Hebert, nursing profes-
sor, said he is also dealing with the yourself. Some are better at that aftermath of the flood. Hebert is also than others,” Hebert said. The Red Cross has launched a a new professor at Loyola, living in Lafayette. He hosts a radio program massive relief operation in Louisicalled Family Caregiving, focusing ana, estimated to cost at least $30 on the needs of people who care for million. Patrick Pannett, a Red Cross family members with disabilities, spokesperson, said aid from outside illnesses, injury and elderly parents. sources is crucial for mending the He dedicated a show last week to the disaster. According to Pannett, Red topic of flood preparedness in the Cross has sheltered between seven and 11 thousand people each night aftermath of his situation. Hebert said his home was not at 36 shelters since the flooding began. This badly damaged in number has the flood, but may “People are holding up. been declinstill require mainte- There's nothing more you ing. Pannett nance. Driving home said a main from New Orleans on can do.” reason the Saturday afternoon, floods have he said he found — Michele Ellis caused so himself trapped be- Flood victim and Loyola professor much damtween two bodies age is beof water on a rural highway. He planned to sleep in his cause the water is unusually dynamvehicle, but was rescued by first re- ic. As the water recedes, it moves to sponders in a National Guard truck. other areas. Pannett said this is why He left his vehicle on the highway, homes have continued to flood even spent the night at a friend’s house after the rain lightened up. According to him, people are unaware of and got home the next morning. “The first thing for recovery is the extent of the flood's damage betrying to collect your thoughts and cause there is not enough attention
from the national media. “The single most important job we can do is to bring the resources to the table and bring national attention to the area. We’re going to continue to tell the story and make sure the rest of the country knows,” Pannett said in a phone interview from Washington. Ellis said that regardless of the situation, she tries to remain positive. Friends and volunteers have been generous in helping her and her husband. She said in the midst of a situation where some have died and some have become homeless, she is grateful for what she has. “Sometimes you feel the hand of God really close to you. I’m feeling that love now because everything we need has been provided in some shape or form… I feel like we’re so blessed,” Ellis said. Anyone can donate to the flood relief effort by visiting RedCross.org or calling 1-800-RED-CROSS. The Associated Press contributed to this reporting.
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While some students were moving into the dorms, others were cleaning debris out of the homes of flood victims in south Louisiana. As a result of the flood starting in mid-August, Louisianians have united together to support those affected by the flooding. Loyola's men's basketball team spent part of their day Aug. 20 in Denham Springs rebuilding areas affected by the flooding, according to the Loyola Wolf Pack Athletics Facebook page. Stacy Holloway, head coach, described the devastation the team saw as heartbreaking. “Our guys were definitely moved by the amount of destruction and went to work helping clean up,” he said on the page. WWL reported that 90 percent of homes in Denham Springs took on water during the flooding. Loyola's chapter of Chi Alpha, a Christian service organization, traveled to Baton Rouge to assist in the clean-up of the Faith A/G Worship Center on the same day. “It was really a pleasure to be able to serve the church. Having grown up in church, it's really unbelievable to see the devastation of losing everything, and it's unimaginable to know that the place you may have gone to worship is completely gone,” said Joshua Byrd, A'16 and member of Chi Alpha. Byrd and 10 others from Chi Alpha assisted in the clean-up. Loyola's Student Government Association is currently planning relief efforts with the Office of Mission and Ministry, according to Elisa Diaz, SGA president. A potentional option is for Loyola to become a Red Cross drop off location, Diaz said. The Office of Mission and Ministry is also helping out victims of the flooding by collecting donations outside the Ignatius Chapel. Those donations will be sent to the Archdiocese of New Orleans, which will distribute the donations to bishops in affected areas, according to a letter circulated by Archbishop Gregory Aymond.