September 3, 2021
President Joe Biden is scheduled to travel to Louisiana on Friday to meet with local leaders on the frontline of the Hurricane Ida recovery. Afterwards, the President will tour neighborhoods in the state, including communities in New Orleans, LaPlace, and Lafourche Parish impacted by Hurricane Ida. He is also expected to deliver remarks about his administration’s response to the hurricane.
On Sunday, Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana with torrential rain fall and category 4 winds that left the Gulf Coast state badly beaten and in total power blackout before proceeding to the Northeast coastlines, causing major flash flooding in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York that also left more than 15 people dead, severe damage to buildings and other essential transportation infrastructures.
The President has approved emergency declarations for the states affected by the Hurricane, including Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania and ordered Federal assistance, including FEMA, to provide emergency assistance to supplement state and local efforts and help coordinate all disaster relief efforts.
Earlier in the week, President Biden held a virtual meeting at the White House with FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell and elected officials from Louisiana and Mississippi. Participants includes Governor John Bel Edwards, New Orleans Mayor LaYoya Cantrell, Balton Rouge Mayor Sharon Weston Broome, Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng, Morgan City Mayor Lee Dragna and Lafayette Mayor John Guillory. On the Mississippi side, Governor Tate Reeves, Bay St. Louis Mayor Michael Favre, Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes and Jackson Mayor Chokwe Lumumba.
