WGNO — Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng says she’s encouraged by the latest developments in the forecasts of tropical storms Marco and Laura, but she doesn’t want people in the parish to let down their guard.
Lee Sheng told WGNO that while garbage, recycling and public transportation was closed for the day, Monday, the parish revisit whether to keep the services closed for any additional days this week.
Lower-lying areas like Lafitte and Grand Isle were under mandatory evacuation orders, and Lee Sheng said that both areas seemed to be faring well.
But while Marco diminishes and Laura seers clear of southeast Louisiana, Lee Sheng isn’t ready to write-off the threats. She says all of the parish’s 192 pumps are operating, and all 14 of the pump operator safe houses are manned.
Lee Sheng says that even if Marco fizzles, people should still be ready for any impact from Laura which is forecast to perhaps become a major hurricane making landfall closer to the Texas-Louisiana border. She is encouraging people to just slide any of their Marco preps down the line for Laura.
“Everyone needs to remain vigilant. Stay home as much as you can. Get your errands done when the weather is okay. And if it starts raining and the streets start flooding, please stay home,” Lee Sheng told WGNO.
Most of the rain from Marco remained east of Louisiana, but the forecast included the possibility of that rain moving over the New Orleans area as the storm drifted west. Also, most models predict Laura will make landfall somewhere in Texas or southwest Louisiana. But the storm was in the process of moving past Cuba on Monday, and some forecasts called for the storm to move closer to the New Orleans area.
Stay with WGNO News for the latest from parish leaders on their response to both storms.