by Rhina Guidos, Catholic News Service
Catholic Charities in and around the areas of Louisiana and Mississippi affected by Hurricane Ida — one of the most powerful storms to hit the continental U.S. since Hurricane Katrina in 2005 — are collecting donations as they prepare to help with the yet-unknown damage caused by the late August storm.
In a televised Aug. 30 meeting with President Joe Biden, Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said he estimated that close to 2 million people were without electricity in the region, though news reports said about 1 million were affected.
Many remained without cellphone service, and although just one death had been confirmed by midday Aug. 30, Edwards said the death toll likely will rise.
Many Masses Aug. 29 had been suspended in the region as residents prepared to ride out the storm or had evacuated.
Edwards said the damage was “catastrophic” as news outlets showed flooded and destroyed homes, torn roofs and water running through Louisiana streets like a rushing river.
Biden said he asked the Federal Aviation Administration to work with electricity providers in Louisiana and Mississippi to use surveillance drones “to assess Ida’s damage to energy infrastructure.”
Though the hurricane had torn through much of Louisiana as a Category 4 storm on Aug. 29, the following day it was heading — as a downgraded, but still life-threatening tropical storm —toward Mississippi and then Tennessee, where flooding was the main concern.
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