Governor John Bel Edwards held a Press Conference Friday afternoon regarding Hurricane Harvey.  Edwards referred to the storm as “catastrophic” and reflected on how saturated the ground already is in Louisiana due to all of the rain over the last months.  Edwards said that everyone is in agreement with Harvey hitting Corpus Christi; however, after that, there is no agreement.  He said “worst case scenario, the storm heads back into the Gulf over the warm water and comes to Louisiana.  He said no one has ruled that out.  The Governor urged Louisiana residents not to become complacent just because the storm is currently affecting Texas.

Edwards urged all residents that as we move forward to please be careful and stay informed on road closures by using 511LA.org.  He said if you are going to travel, please do not drive on a road covered with water.  “Don’t try to drive through it.”  Last year, there were a lot of fatalities from people driving through water without knowing the depth.

Lake Charles Mayor, Nick Hunter spoke at the conference.  He said “We do expect to have flooding on our streets.  He said to expect those areas in the past that have flooded to flood during this storm.  We remember what Rita was like and that was a bad experience.  We cannot predict what is going to happen with this storm.  We encourage people to stay up-to-date with information on the storm.  He said “You can replace property but you cannot replace lives.”

The Governor’s office is working with State Police and local officials to make sure they are successful in their efforts.  He asked for the public’s patience during this time.  And said “Pray…not just for ourselves but for our neighbors in Texas.”