Louisiana is gearing up for Marco and Laura, both expected to visit the state in the next several days.
Gov. John Bel Edwards held a press conference today to let folks know what is happening. Another press conference is scheduled for 6:00 pm
Watch live below;
"This will primarily be a water event," Edwards said at Sunday morning's press conference.
Rainfall, storm surge and wind are expected along the coast, he said.
Pumps have been sent to Grand Isle, and sand bag, floodgate and other preps are underway, he said.
School buses have been secured and will be staged across the southern part of the state, and other buses also will be in Louisiana by tonight, he said.
The National Guard is staging high water vehicles and generators across the southern part of the state, and a mandatory evacuation has been ordered for the east and west banks in Plaquemines Parish, Golden Meadow and Grand Isle.
Evacuating, sheltering and other aspects of hurricane response is problematic because of COVID, the governor said.
He asks anyone who must evacuate and who can afford it to stay in a hotel. If you can't afford it, stay with family or friends but maintain social distancing and wear masks, he said, even inside.
Group shelters will be a last resort because of the virus, he said.
There are talks in motion with FEMA to put some people up in hotels, and any shelters that are set up will have to include COVID mitigation - like PPE for people arriving, thermometers, staff monitoring, etc.
If you don't have any options and don't have transportation, call your local office of Emergency Preparedness; you can find those contacts on the getagameplan.org website, he said.
He advised Louisianians to prepare for at least 72 hours, because help may not arrive quickly because Laura will be barreling in on the heels of Marco.
