NORFOLK, Va. — Cathy Barnard says she has several loved ones living in the city of Houma, Louisiana, right outside of New Orleans. Her son, brother, niece, and even her 97-year-old mother, Josephine, are all left without power and struggling to call each other.
High winds and flooding tore through Louisiana when Ida made landfall in the southern state as a Category 4 hurricane. It is now continuing to work its way inland, having weakened into a tropical depression.
"The last time I talked to [my niece] was last night. I was trying to get a hold of her this morning, but I couldn't because the line was down," said Barnard. "Mostly everybody in my family had to leave Louisiana."
Barnard grew up in the city of Houma and says many of her family members still live there. She says when her mother returned to her house Monday morning, she found the roof torn off from Hurricane Ida.
Barnard says her son even had to evacuate from his apartment before it became too dangerous. She says one of the tenants living in the same complex called and said the apartment where her son lives is destroyed.
She says her brother, who lost his last home during Hurricane Katrina 16 years ago, doesn't know if his house weathered this latest storm. He and his family also had to evacuate and are now staying in a hotel together.
"I was worried about them, because all I can think about is them at a rest area, you know, with winds and things like that," said Barnard. "He had to build his house up on an eight-foot platform after Hurricane Katrina. Now, he doesn't know what he's going to come home to."
Barnard says she is now preparing for her mother and niece to come up to Norfolk where they will stay with her for the time being.
Barnard says she doesn't want people to forget about the surrounding areas of New Orleans. She says while New Orleans was hit hard by Hurricane Katrina years ago and is still impacted by Hurricane Ida, she wants people to recognize there are so many other cities and towns in Louisiana that need help.
"Pray for my family... well, pray for all of Louisiana," said Barnard. "'Louisiana strong.'"
Barnard says she feels lucky her family was down there at the time to take care of each other, but now it's her time to bring her family up to Virginia and help them recover.