The residual effects of Hurricane Ida one year later
29th August 2022 · 0 Comments
By C.C. Campbell-Rock
Contributing Writer
Airplane passengers can see blue tarps on roofs for miles as planes approach Louis Armstrong International Airport. The blue plastic coverings are reminders of Hurricane Ida’s destructive wind damage in metro New Orleans.
Hurricane Ida appeared on August 29, 2021, on the 16th Anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. It looked like Ida brought high winds like Katrina, but this time the levees held in New Orleans. Only 10 to 14 inches of rain was measured in New Orleans before the rain ended early on August 29.
During Hurricane Katrina, there were over 50 failures of the levees and flood walls around the city and its suburbs. The levee and flood wall failures caused widespread flooding. Eighty percent of the city was flooded to the rooftops of many homes and small buildings.
Hurricane Ida made landfall at Port Fourchon, Louisiana, as a powerful Category 4 storm with winds of 150 mph — making it one of the fifth strongest landfalls in U.S. history. The hurricane’s wind gusts were stronger at 172 mph in Port Fourchon. Other areas were also hit with intense wind gusts, NBC reported.
Many Louisiana residents chose to ride out the storm. By the time Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana as a Category 4 storm, more than 400,000 utility customers in Louisiana were without power. By Sunday night, that number had risen to nearly one million, including much of the city of New Orleans.
Louisiana’s Lafourche Parish, 60 miles south of New Orleans, was hit especially hard on the Gulf of Mexico. Brennan Matherne, the Sheriff’s Office captain, told NPR that 100 percent of the structures in LaFourche Parish were damaged by Hurricane Ida’s brutal winds. Some had been completely leveled; others were blown away.
Twenty-six deaths were reported in Louisiana due to Hurricane Ida, compared to the estimated 1,833 deaths from Hurricane Katrina, but the effect was virtually the same, including displaced residents, power outages, torn up roofs and downed fences.
And like Hurricane Katrina, it may be years before some homeowners are back in their homes. Some have been back since Katrina, but repairs are still underway. Now, a year after Ida, some residents are still displaced.
Debra Campbell is still living in her aunt’s home. The blue tarp is still on her roof. As is the case for many Louisiana homeowners, FEMA grants didn’t cover the substantial damage from Ida or Katrina. Many residents can’t afford homeowners or federal flood insurance. This is especially true for senior citizens on fixed incomes.
Only 25 percent of the policies in Louisiana do have flood insurance. It’s less than that in Southwest Louisiana, Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon says.
And because of a new risk rating system, the NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) premiums and deductibles may increase. The average price of NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) flood insurance in Louisiana is $726 per year, though how much policyholders will pay may vary significantly based on the location of your home.
The information on the new flood insurance program indicates that half of the 500,000 policyholders in Louisiana can expect increases of at least 129 percent, phased in over multiple years. About 1 in 10 will see increases of more than 400 percent.
Homeowners in Louisiana are seeing much higher insurance premiums this year as the 2022 Atlantic storm season begins. Residents are reporting spikes of 30 percent or more. One homeowner says his insurance premium costs went from $1,500 last year to $5,200 this year.
When rising prices of roofers, contractors, and suppliers are factored in, it’s clear that homeowners whose properties were damaged by Hurricanes Ida and Katrina are between a rock and a hard place.
Donelon predicts that legislators might be able to decrease the 18 percent compounding annual interest increase. He expects the cap will be negotiated to eight percent or nine percent.
This article originally published in the August 29, 2022 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
