Denver Newsroom, Aug 31, 2020 / 16:34 pm
After Hurricane Laura struck states along the Gulf of Mexico last week, Catholic Charities and other groups have provided aid to victims, some of whom have been displaced or are still without utilities.
With winds of 150 mph, the category 4 hurricane made landfall near Cameron, Louisiana, on the early morning of Aug. 27. As measured by maximum sustained winds, it is one of the strongest hurricanes to hit Louisiana in recorded history.
In the United States alone, the storm has killed 22 people: 14 in Louisiana, one in Florida, and seven in Texas. A large portion of deaths was attributed to carbon monoxide poisoning due to unsafe generators, CBS News reported.
As of Aug. 30, 900,000 people were still without power and 220,000 were without running water. Karen Clark & Company's industry estimated that the hurricane's damages have caused $8.7 billion of insured losses in the U.S.