Nursing home residents at risk as flood waters surge above levees in one New Orleans parish

UPDATE:  At 2:49 p.m., Gov. Bobby Jindal (@BobbyJindal) tweeted from his visit to Plaquemines Parish that Riverbend Nursing and Rehab Center in the Jesuit Bend/Belle Chasse area was evacuating its 112 residents. No injuries have been reported. Street flooding in the parish has been reported at 5-9 feet and rising.

Hurricane Isaac is causing extensive flooding in Plaquemines Parish, one of Louisiana’s southeast coastal parishes, threatening residents in at least one nursing home.

According to a Times-Picayune news article posted at 9:11 a.m. today, one nursing home in the Jesuit Bend neighborhood of Plaquemines Parish had not evacuated prior to the storm. Storm waters began to surge over the top of the parish’s 12-foot levees this morning, casuing extensive flooding. The Governor’s office has said it will attempt an evacuation of the senior care site, the story reports.

Officials also are watching Barataria Bay coastal region, since water levels reportedly rose two feet in less than two hours near dawn, according to the Times-Picayune story.

The National Guard is onsite, but large-scale rescue missions will likely wait until the wind subsides. As of 9:30 a.m., local officals estimated at least 500,000 people are without power in the state, with the western sections of the city slated to receive the brunt of the storm later today.

Evacuations are not normally manadatory for hurricanes that are Category 2 or lower.

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