BATON ROUGE- Governor John Bel Edwards held a news conference on Monday, Aug. 31, to discuss the devastation caused by Hurricane Laura and efforts to assist storm victims.

An online resource for those affected by the storm is now available through the Office of Emergency Preparedness and can found at getagameplan.org or by clicking here.

The site has several guides for families and businesses to follow in emergencies, such as a hurricane or other natural disasters. There are several ways to volunteer on the site as well.

The governor also announced a site for resources specifically designated to Hurricane Laura. That site can be found at hurricanelaura.la.gov or by clicking here. For more information and updates, you can text "LAURA" to 67283.

As of Monday, there are over 10,000 evacuees in the state and over 4,000 in Texas. Governor Edwards says that those 4,000 people are staying in hotels paid for by the state of Texas.

For emergency shelter information, click here or text "LA Shelter" to 898211.

For eligible, low to moderate-income households that do not typically receive SNAP benefits, Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (DSNAP) is available. You can begin registering on Thursday, Sept. 10, by clicking here.

The Department of Children and Family services (DCFS) has upgraded its system, so those registered in past disasters will have to re-register.

The Baton Rouge Area Foundation Executive Vice President, John Spain, also explained efforts to raise money for those affected by Hurricane Laura in Lake Charles during the conference. 

Donations can be made at FoundationSWLA.org, or by clicking here. 

Spain says that every penny donated to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation will go to the Lake Charles fund. He says their fundraising staff is unable to raise money at this time and many of them are even housed in the capital area currently.

The foundation will begin making grants to nonprofits on Monday, Aug. 31, according to Spain.