NEW ORLEANS — St. Charles
A tornado touched down near the correctional facility in Killona, St. Charles Parish. One woman was found dead outdoors, and eight people were taken to the hospital with believed non-life threatening injuries.
Parish President Matthew Jewell declared a state of emergency and said most of the ‘significant damage’ is in Killona and Montz.
The storm left 475 people without power and up to 20 families without a home. There was an early report of a gas leak, which was repaired. The sheriff says the parish’s newly-repaired gun range was destroyed.
"We are indeed saddened for the loss of one of our citizens," Sheriff Gregory Champagne said.
Officials in St. Charles Parish urge residents that are in need of help to call the Emergency Operations Center at (985)-783-5050.
Jefferson Parish
In Jefferson Parish, another tornado caused significant damage in communities like Gretna. More than 5,000 people in Jefferson Parish are without power as of 8:40 a.m. Thursday, according to Entergy's outage map.
A confirmed tornado touched down in Gretna after 3 p.m., damaging several buildings and homes. Homes and businesses in Harvey and Marrero sustained significant damage as well. The tornado’s path was similar to the tornado that hit the area in March and traveled to Arabi.
"We've had teams go out. We have our firefighters, our EMTs, and Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office separated into teams and checking the area block by block," Cynthia Lee Sheng said.
There were no injuries reported in Jefferson Parish.
A shelter is set up at the Terrytown Gym.
West Jefferson High School and Marrero Middle School will both be closed on Thursday due to damage.
Anyone in need of assistance in Jefferson Parish should call the Jefferson Parish Operations Center at (504)-349-5360.
Orleans Parish
The tornado that began in Gretna made a beeline for Algiers, knocking out power to much of the West Bank of Orleans Parish.
"We have significant damage reports in Algiers, on the area in General Meyer and Tita. We've have four people transported to area hospitals," Collin Arnold, Director of Homeland Security for Orleans Parish said.
Public safety and hazard mitigation are assessing damages in the areas of Orleans Parish that were affected.
Four people were injured and taken to the hospital, but are considered stable.
To stay up to date with alerts from the parish text "nolaready" to 77295.
St. Bernard
The tornado that began in Jefferson Parish, then came through Algiers, made its way through St. Bernard Parish, just before 4 p.m. The path began on Meahle Avenue and was almost identical to the path of the tornado that went through Arabi in March. Officials say it traveled north east and left destruction for about two miles in Arabi, but the damage was “not as significant” as the storm that swept through in the spring.
"The sheriff's office and firefighters are still out in the field conducting their search and rescue efforts," Sherriff James Pohlmann said.
Parish President Guy McInnis said in a press conference that the citizens of St. Bernard parish will have the resources to recover and Thursday will begin an assessment of the damage. Crews will start clean-up on
Officials in St. Bernard say that if you are in need of assistance, call 911. For non-emergencies, call (504)-271-2501.
The sheriff’s office said there were some minor injuries.
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