BATON ROUGE – Abandoned, flood-damaged homes will be torn down soon, the city-parish said in a news release late Monday.

Officials will start to condemn and demolish housing units flooded and let behind by owners. The mayor's office said structures that cause significant blight, public health and safety concerns will be targeted first. Demolition will begin on some houses in the coming weeks, the city said.

Also, the city was approved to extend its debris removal process until August.

“We know the very difficult path toward long-term recovery for our residents is one that continues for so many of us who were impacted by the August 2016 flooding,” said Mayor Sharon Weston Broome. “This extension provides a much needed opportunity to utilize federal resources to support that recovery process across our most heavily impacted neighborhoods while continuing to address the needs of our residents associated with the flood debris that still remains across Baton Rouge.”

 People still in need of flood debris collection should contact the Department of Environmental Services at (225) 389-4865.

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