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Parts of Assumption Parish dealing with backwater flooding

5 years 7 months 3 weeks ago Monday, April 08 2019 Apr 8, 2019 April 08, 2019 7:21 PM April 08, 2019 in News
Source: WBRZ

ASSUMPTION PARISH - Recent storms are making things worse in Assumption Parish, which is already dealing with backwater flooding. Around six to eight inches of rain fell over the weekend. Many residents are surrounded by sandbags, and some roads remain closed throughout parts of the parish.

"My husband filled sandbags all night last night, so we are filling them today trying to save my mother-in-laws property," said resident Tessie Metrejean.

Metrejean lives along Highway 69, several miles north of Pierre Part. 

"We lost my father-in-law two weeks ago," she said. "We love her dearly, we are not going to let her lose everything she has, everything they've work for."

The rising water near Grand Bayou is slowly making its way into the backyard, creating a mess.

"They have a pump, but it's not working fast enough," Metrjean said.

John Boudreaux is in charge of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness in Assumption Parish, and he says this is not an unusual problem in the area. But rainy weather hasn't helped the swollen waterways.

"One-third of that water is put into the Atchafalaya Basin, so the Atchafalaya affects this area," Boudreaux said. "[The basin] is up because of the high water in the Mississippi River."

His team is taking action.

"We have been doing sandbag operations for almost a month now, as well as flood tubes and tiger dams," he added.

With this operation in place, there is only one thing left to do.

"We just have to wait," Boudreaux said.

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