Hurricane Laura slammed into Cameron, La., with winds of 150 m.p.h. at 1 a.m. Central on Aug. 27, leaving coastal areas nearby battered and bringing heavy winds and rains inland.
The storm’s landfall in Louisiana was 30 miles east of the Texas border, and it moved northeast across Louisiana.
Joe Watson, who lives two-hours northeast of the hurricane’s landfall in Lafayette, La., said the storm brought extensive tidal flooding around the region.
“We had a really rough night, but we are safe,” Watson, the Produce Marketing Association’s vice president of member engagement, said in an e-mail. “I don’t have any clear insights on supply chain but I would imagine that the Lake Charles area will be disrupted for a few days.”
Short term, the hardest hit areas are expecting no power, closed roads due to trees/debris, and dangerous toxins in the air due to a chemical plant fire in Lake Charles, said Chris Ferachi, operations and safety analyst for Capitol City Produce, Baton Rouge. “Just west of us in Lake Charles, they are just beginning to assess damage and begin the clean-up process.”
Interstate 10 is closed in the area, and a shelter in place is in effect or Lake Charles until the chemical fire can be put out, Ferachi said.
About three hours northeast of Hurricane Laura’s landfall, Cindy Vead, sales representative with sweet potato shipper Earl Roy Enterprises, Hessmer, La., said power was out after a night of tornado warnings and rain. Rain associated with the storm that began in the early morning hours stopped by about 7 a.m. Aug. 27, she said. Wind gusts up to 65 miles per hour have been reported, she said.
“We have been having winds but nothing extreme,” she said. “If there is any damage, it is minimal.”
Rainfall at the farm on Aug. 27 through mid-morning totaled about five inches, she said.
The firm’s sweet potato harvest was expected to begin about Sept. 1 but could be delayed a few days because of wet fields. Harvest usually takes from six to ten weeks, depending on the weather, Vead said.
In 2019, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that Louisiana accounted for about 5.4% of total U.S. sweet potato shipments.
The Packer’s Sweet Potato Coverage
The Packer’s Louisiana Coverage
