A winter storm with record-breaking low’s in Louisiana left about a quarter of the population without clean drinking water. These conditions have continued as long as a week after the storm passed through the state. The storm caused power outages and burst pipes, which also led to boil advisories in 3 of Louisiana’s largest cities. Due to a high level of demand and low supply, officials resorted to trucking water to hospitals and other medical centers which were in dire need.
Lake Charles, whose power was shut off as the aftermath of hurricanes Delta and Laura, experienced over 2,000 water leaks throughout the city, which was caused by a delay in communication regarding the freezing temperatures. Customers in many cities complained of a lack of communication regarding rolling blackouts. Shreveport experienced a huge blow to it’s city’s water system due to the extremity of the weather and it’s aging infrastructure. Officials in Louisiana worry that the storm in Texas may overshadow the natural disaster they are experiencing, despite over 200,000 citizens who may go without drinkable water for as many as 14 days.
