They’re used to storm surge. But Ida was different in this Coast community, some say.
Jourdan River Shores is used to flooding.
The low-lying area is filled with elevated homes that overlook the water in Kiln. And storm after storm, residents move their vehicles to higher ground — and some choose to evacuate — as surge often overtakes the streets in their community.
But while it’s not uncommon for roads to be impassable or water to flood underneath the raised homes, some who live in the area say Hurricane Ida left a lasting mark.
“Zeta left more damage, but there was way more flooding with Ida,” said Bryan Fassbender. He, along with neighbors Tom Thibodeaux and Kenny Alison, left piled up in a pickup truck on Monday morning at the end of Pontiac Drive. There was just a small sliver of street available that hadn’t been taken over by water, and it was littered with storm debris.
Thibodeaux said at it’s highest point Monday, the water was chest deep.
Fassbender and others used canoes to get to the end of their street, dog in tow, to evacuate to safety. And even though the water was high, he joked that they were one of the few streets in the area that still had power. Many mailboxes in Jourdan River shores were also submerged on Monday.
The Jourdan River’s flood stage is at 6 feet, and major flood stage is at 10 feet. The river measured over 8 feet on Monday, and is expected to crest at 10.5 feet on Tuesday morning.
Sun Herald reporter Mary Perez contributed to this report.
This story was originally published August 30, 2021 at 4:16 PM.
