Louisianans scramble for relief; Biden pledges to support ravaged communities

Gulf Today Report

Hurricane Ida-battered Louisiana residents and area businesses, who have endured almost a week without electricity as President Joe Biden walked the streets of a hardhit Louisiana neighbourhood and told local residents, "I know you're hurting, I know you're hurting.”

Biden pledged robust federal assistance to get people back on their feet and said the government already had distributed $100 million directly to individuals in the state in $500 checks to give them a first slice of critical help. Many people, he said, don't know what help is available because they can't get cellphone service.

READ MORE

Storm Ida brings flash flooding to New York, mayor declares emergency

Mohamed Bin Zayed meets Afghan families at Emirates Humanitarian City

The president arrived at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport at about 12:45pm and spent several hours in the Bayou State before departing later Friday evening.

Joe Biden talks to residents as he tours a neighbourhood hit by Hurricane Ida in LaPlace, Louisiana. Reuters

Even around New Orleans, a continued lack of power for most residents made a sultry stretch of summer hard to bear and added to woes in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida. Louisiana authorities searched Friday for a man they said shot another man to death after they both waited in a long line to fill up at a gas station in suburban New Orleans.

Less than a week after Hurricane Ida battered the Gulf Coast, Mayor LaToya Cantrell strongly encouraged residents who evacuated because of Hurricane Ida to begin returning home.

After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, some Louisianans invested in natural gas generators, and they have been able to keep the lights on. Others have not been as fortunate.

A view shows debris and buildings damaged from Hurricane Ida in Louisiana, US, on Friday. Reuters

In New Orleans, Aaron Lowe, 49, lined up on Thursday at a fuel station to wait for gasoline for the third straight day. He said he and many others braced for the storm by getting a generator, but finding gasoline has been difficult.

"I had to wait about 40 minutes (today)," said Lowe, a construction worker. "I was waiting between two and four hours in the last couple of days."

Lowe was at a Shell station on S. Claiborne Avenue in New Orleans, which was running on generators, said Abdul Saleh, the station manager.

Local residents welcome Joe Biden as he tours a neighbourhood hit by Hurricane Ida in LaPlace, Louisiana. Reuters

The devastation was clear even as Air Force One approached New Orleans, with uprooted trees and blue tarps covering shredded houses coming into view. The road to LaPlace exhibited power-line wood poles jutting from the ground at odd angles.

Trips to natural disaster scenes have long been a feature of US presidencies, moments to demonstrate compassion and show the public leadership during a crisis. They are also opportunities to hit pause, however temporarily, from the political sniping that often dominates Washington.