Emotions ran high in weather-battered Lake Charles this week, back when projections for hurricane-to-be Francine showed the storm affecting most of Louisiana’s west and central coast. The storm’s predicted path has since shifted, leaving the region out of the storm cone.
Local activists and recovery experts say it’s a blessing — because the region would have been caught unprepared.
“How many more years will Southwest Louisiana be caught unprepared, scrambling at the last minute to find extreme weather shelters for the unhoused and those in need during emergencies?” John O’Donnell, former local director of disaster recovery nonprofit SBP and emergency preparedness consultant, said in a Facebook post. “This happens with every storm.”
A press release by the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury noted that there is shelter available for men at the Salvation Army in Lake Charles and for both men and women at the Sulphur Christian Community Coalition in Sulphur, meaning that women and children from Lake Charles would have to cross either the 210 or I-10 bridge to access shelter.
Neither the parish nor the city of Lake Charles had set up their own shelters, or announced plans to do so, as of Tuesday afternoon. The city did not respond to questions about the capacity of designated shelters.
Leaders tout the city’s success in rebuilding after a slew of disasters. For others, recovery remains slow and painful.
According to the 2024 Point in Time count there are currently 249 unhoused people in Calcasieu Parish. The Salvation Army told KPLC that there were 17 shelter spots available as of Tuesday morning.
According to the release, there are currently no emergency resources for food set up locally specifically to respond to needs arising from the storm either.
“At this time forecast tracks strongly indicate this storm will make landfall well to the east of Lake Charles/Calcasieu Parish,” said the statement released by the Calcasieu Parish Executive Policy Group, which includes representatives from the parish, all local municipalities, the sheriff’s office and the school board. “The City has had communication with Second Harvest, and these services will be mobilized if they become necessary.”
Those involved in hurricane recovery from Hurricanes Laura and Delta in 2020 and currently preparing for Francine say local government’s efforts have fallen short.
As the seat of parish government and the largest city in the area, Lake Charles should be doing more, said Roishetta Ozane, director of The Vessel Project, which has been heavily involved in hurricane response and preparedness since Laura.
“Everyone comes to Lake Charles for resources and Lake Charles has no resources to give.”
Roishetta Ozane, The Vessel Project
“Everyone comes to Lake Charles for resources and Lake Charles has no resources to give,” Ozane said.
Her organization has scrambled to provide hotel rooms for unhoused residents, as well as non-perishable food and sandbags for local families. They have not received any funding or resources from local government entities, Ozane noted.
“Not one bit of assistance,” Ozane said. Funding for resources such as emergency kits, food and shelter hve come from her organization’s operating fund, donations and crowdsourcing, not local public funds.
“I’m very upset with the parish and city in terms of how they’ve prepared,” Ozane added. “It is not sufficient for local government to rely on small organizations and churches.”