HOUMA, La. — Piles of debris, blue roofs and tents in front of homes are signs of Ida’s destructive path.
Now, many who drive through downtown Houma are greeted with a new colorful sign that may offer a little hope.
“It took a lot of people coming together to even get the level of rebuilding and recovery we are now,” artist Amanda Percle said.
Percle worked 30 hours on this mural and installed it on Main Street in Houma last week. Painted in bright colors with people making up puzzle pieces, the mural says “community.”
“With special emphasis on unity,” Percle said.
It signifies a community coming together.
Percle herself dropped off bags of clothes to those who need it. Many in this Houma neighborhood lost nearly everything.
“We just hanging in there, waiting to hear anything,” Casey Cohn said.
Cohn is living in here home, even though it’s full of mold.
“We’re all still just waiting on getting FEMA assistance,” she said.
She’s thankful she got power back a month after the storm. About 200 Entergy customers in Terrebonne Parish are still without power and many homes are still unlivable. And while some businesses have reopened, others are in pieces.
“A lot of us are still in tents because there’s no where to turn,” Cohn said.
To help those who don’t have a livable home, the parish announced last week that five base camps opened for temporary housing. One is behind the Bayou Towers in Houma, offering people a tent or modular unit to stay in with access to showers, restrooms, food and laundry service.
There’s still a lot of need and it’s taking the whole community to meet those needs.