Louisiana, Texas Brace for Storm : Thousands on Gulf Coast Flee Hurricane

Hurricane Danny, packing gusts up to 92 m.p.h., churned toward the Gulf Coast Wednesday, prompting evacuation of thousands of offshore oil workers and lowland residents.

As the season’s third hurricane neared shore, bands of thunderstorms from the fringes of the sprawling system battered the Louisiana coast, and flash-flood warnings were issued. The hurricane was expected to reach land at Port Arthur, Tex., and New Iberia, La.

Storm surge flooding of five to eight feet above normal was expected near where the hurricane reaches land, and rainfall accumulations up to 10 inches were expected in the path of the storm, the National Weather Service said.

275 Miles Off Coast

At 6 p.m., the storm’s center was about 275 miles south-southeast of Lake Charles, La., near latitude 26.5 north, longitude 91.3 west, according to the National Hurricane Center at Coral Gables, Fla. It was moving toward the northwest at 10 to 15 m.p.h.

A hurricane watch was upgraded to a hurricane warning from Freeport, Tex., to the mouth of the Mississippi River.

“The storm involves a large amount of the Gulf, but it doesn’t have the proper low-level flow to strengthen into an intense storm,” said Larry Shaw, a weather service forecaster at Slidell, La.

Shaw said the storm’s central eye will reach land during the day today, but gales and fringe effects will hit shore hours earlier than that.

Move Inland

Many persons moved inland to higher ground along the low-lying Louisiana coast.

A steady stream of traffic flowed north along state Highway 1 out of Grand Isle, a fishing village of 2,500 due south of New Orleans where high tides and storm surges are a threat.

Jimmy Bernauer, civil defense director in St. Mary Parish, said the flood wall around Morgan City and Berwick was closed as a precaution.

In Vermilion Parish, Sheriff Ray Lemaire said 400 residents of Pecan Island were ordered out. Shelters were set up in high schools at Kaplan and Abbeville.

Oil Company Copters

Oil companies had every available helicopter hauling workers from offshore rigs, where an estimated 20,000 workers were endangered by the storm surge.

“We’ve got everything flying every minute,” said Byron Stone, operations officer for Petroleum Helicopters Inc. in Lafayette.

Faced with the prospect of torrential rain accompanying the storm, farmers along the Louisiana coast hurried to get crops in.

Jerry Hoyt of the Rapides Parish Farm Bureau said corn farmers, in particular, raced to harvest their crop, predicted to be double the size of last year’s. She said heavy wind and rain would beat what is left to the ground.

In Houma, grocery and hardware stores reported a run on tape, batteries and canned foods. There were also indications that some of the purchases were for hurricane parties.

Sold Out of Hurricane Mix

“We are completely sold out of Pat O’Brien’s Hurricane Mix,” said Bill Gourgues, assistant manager of Rouse’s Supermarket, referring to a popular south Louisiana rum drink.

Across the Mississippi River from New Orleans, where a section of levee collapsed two weeks ago, workers drew up an emergency plan for a ring levee if necessary.

Texas Gulf Coast residents stocked up on supplies and boarded windows after officials issued storm warnings.

Virginia Fincher of the Port Arthur K mart said her store was sold out of size D batteries and hurricane lamps.

“We have very little fuel left,” she said. “We have boarded up the front windows already just as a precaution.”

Before the warnings were shifted westward, coastal residents in Alabama began stocking up on batteries, groceries and gasoline. “The tide is above normal, but it’s nothing we haven’t dealt with before,” said Jerry Waller of Dauphin Island.