Badai Isaac Terjang Louisiana: 900 Ribu Tanpa Listrik

In Isaac’s Wake, the Bayou Blackout: 900,000 Without Power as Storm Moves Inland
Hurricane Isaac, while dissipating, is still wreaking havoc on the area surrounding New Orleans, causing major flooding in Mississippi, threatening a dam failure in low-lying areas, and causing one fatality so far.
By MADISON GRAY | @madisonjgray | August 30, 2012

Almost two days after Hurricane Isaac made landfall, striking the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, entire towns have been inundated with floodwaters, downing power lines across the region. Workers are scrambling to restore electricity to the affected area, a 300-mile wide swath of land stretching from southwestern Mississippi to eastern Texas. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said utilities through the state are reporting a total of 900,000 were without electricity Thursday. Power utility Entergy said more than 760,000 of their customers in Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas and Texas are experiencing power outages. As the storm moves toward Baton Rouge at a painfully slow nine miles per hour, despite flooding and storm surges still gripping the state, Entergy says they’ve dispatched a crew of 10,000 workers to help turn the lights back on. “We have damage assessment teams on the ground in southeast Louisiana and repair crews are starting to restore power, so restoration has already begun,” Entergy spokesman Chanel Lagarde told TIME. “But we’re still being hampered by weather conditions, so that will slow us down.” He said that the utility is working as fast as possible, but given the circumstances, there’s no estimate when power will be fully restored to the area. “Until the storm gets out of here and there’s a full assessment, it’s hard to tell.” Some New Orleans residents are approaching their second day without power, and with temperatures expected to climb into the upper 80s this weekend as the storm vacates the city, concern turns to the stifling heat. “We’re asking for customers’ patience. It’s been a very frustrating storm because it’s moved so slowly,” Lagarde said. “We couldn’t get people on the ground yesterday, so we’re asking customers to give us some time.” While no deaths have been reported because of lack of electricity, the storm has claimed its first victim. A tow truck driver was killed by a falling tree in Picayune, Miss., Sue McClaney, associate administrator in the Pearl River County planning office told TIME. The Associated Press reports the tree fell on the driver of the truck, identified by officials as Greg Parker, just after midnight. McClaney said the area is still inundated by the storm’s effects — 37 roads in the area are flooded. To compound matters, she said: “We’ve got high tides coming in right now.” Those tides are stoking fears that a dam close to the Louisiana-Mississippi border may fail, threatening low-lying areas and forcing the evacuation of Tangipahoa Parish, La. Gordon Burgess, the parish’s president, told WWL-TV that the threat affects 50,000 to 60,000 people, who were given a mandatory evacuation notice at about 10 a.m. Thursday. Jindal tweeted that officials in Mississippi have intentionally breached the dam to relieve pressure on it. Without the release, waters would rise to a level of 17 feet affecting several communities along the Tangipahoa River very quickly. “If this dam were to break, it would take about 90 minutes for this water to get to Kentwood,” he said, referring to the Louisiana town lying south of the dam in McComb, Miss. State officials began a controlled breaching of a levee in Plaquemines Parish Thursday afternoon, the Associated Press reported. The release is intended to relieve pressure on the levee, which protects an area hard hit by storm surges since Isaac made landfall. Unlike the system in New Orleans, which was reinforced after Katrina, the Plaquemines levee falls outside the federal system. At a news conference, New Orleans mayor Mitch Landrieu said Isaac brought heavy precipitation to the area, but noted that preparations and improvements made since Hurricane Katrina held. “Isaac dumped 10 to 15 inches on the region,” he said. “Our levees and floodgates held as they were designed to do.” Also on Thursday, President Obama declared a major disaster for Louisiana, which releases FEMA funds to 36 parishes for emergency measures. State and local recovery efforts will be supplemented by federal aid on a cost-sharing basis, the agency said in a statement. As Isaac begins to dissipate into a tropical depression and cleanup efforts begin in the Gulf Coast region, the National Weather Service reported that the fifth named hurricane of the 2012 season has formed. Kirk is currently located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and is moving northwest at 12 mph. However, it is not yet considered a threat to land.

TERJEMAHAN:

Spoiler for :

Hampir dua hari setelah badai ISaac mencapai daratan, Pantai Teluk Louisiana, seluruh kota telah dibanjiri dengan air banjir, menenggak jaringan listrik di seluruh wilayah. Pekerja berebut untuk mengembalikan listrik ke daerah yang terkena, petak 300-mil lebar tanah membentang dari barat daya ke timur Mississippi Texas.

Gubernur Louisiana Bobby Jindal mengatakan utilitas melalui negara melaporkan total 900.000 yang tanpa listrik Kamis. Daya utilitas Entergy mengatakan lebih dari 760.000 pelanggan mereka di Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas dan Texas mengalami pemadaman listrik. Seperti badai bergerak ke arah Baton Rouge pada sembilan mil per jam sangat lambat, meskipun banjir dan badai lonjakan masih mencengkeram negara, Entergy mengatakan mereka telah mengirim awak 10.000 pekerja untuk membantu menghidupkan lampu kembali.

"Kami memiliki tim penilaian kerusakan di tanah di tenggara Louisiana dan kru perbaikan mulai untuk memulihkan tenaga, sehingga pemulihan telah dimulai," kata juru bicara Entergy Chanel Lagarde WAKTU. "Tapi kita masih terhambat oleh kondisi cuaca, sehingga akan memperlambat kita."

Dia mengatakan bahwa utilitas bekerja secepat mungkin, tetapi mengingat keadaan, tidak ada perkiraan kapan listrik akan sepenuhnya dikembalikan ke daerah. "Sampai badai keluar dari sini dan ada penilaian menyeluruh, sulit untuk mengatakan." Beberapa New Orleans penduduk mendekati hari kedua mereka tanpa kekuasaan, dan dengan suhu diperkirakan akan naik ke 80-an atas akhir pekan ini sebagai badai mengosongkan kota , perhatian beralih ke gerah.

"Kami meminta kesabaran pelanggan. Ini merupakan badai yang sangat frustasi karena itu bergerak begitu lambat, "kata Lagarde. "Kita tidak bisa mendapatkan orang-orang di tanah kemarin, jadi kami meminta pelanggan untuk memberikan kita beberapa waktu."

Meskipun tidak ada korban jiwa yang dilaporkan karena kurangnya listrik, badai telah mengklaim korban pertamanya. Seorang pengemudi truk derek tewas akibat tertimpa pohon tumbang di Picayune, Miss, Sue McClaney, administrator asosiasi di kantor Sungai Pearl di County perencanaan kepada WAKTU. The Associated Press melaporkan pohon jatuh pada pengemudi truk, yang diidentifikasi oleh para pejabat sebagai Greg Parker, hanya setelah tengah malam. McClaney mengatakan daerah ini masih dibanjiri oleh efek badai - 37 jalan di daerah yang tergenang. Untuk senyawa hal, dia berkata: "Kami telah mendapat air pasang datang sekarang."

Mereka pasang yang memicu kekhawatiran bahwa bendungan dekat perbatasan Louisiana-Mississippi mungkin gagal, mengancam daerah dataran rendah dan memaksa evakuasi Tangipahoa Parish, La Gordon Burgess, Presiden paroki, mengatakan kepada WWL-TV bahwa ancaman mempengaruhi 50.000 sampai 60.000 orang, yang diberi pemberitahuan wajib evakuasi sekitar pukul 10 pagi hari Kamis.

Jindal tweeted bahwa pejabat di Mississippi telah sengaja melanggar bendungan untuk mengurangi tekanan di atasnya. Tanpa rilis, air akan naik ke level 17 meter yang mempengaruhi beberapa komunitas di sepanjang Sungai Tangipahoa sangat cepat. "Jika bendungan ini adalah untuk istirahat, itu akan memakan waktu sekitar 90 menit untuk air ini untuk sampai ke Kentwood," katanya, merujuk ke kota Louisiana berbaring selatan bendungan di McComb, Mississippi

Pejabat negara mulai melanggar terkendali tanggul di Plaquemines Kamis sore Parish, Associated Press melaporkan. Rilis ini dimaksudkan untuk mengurangi tekanan pada tanggul, yang melindungi daerah terpukul oleh badai sejak Isaac membuat pendaratan. Berbeda dengan sistem di New Orleans, yang diperkuat setelah Katrina, tanggul Plaquemines berada di luar sistem federal.

Pada konferensi pers, New Orleans Walikota Mitch Landrieu mengatakan Ishak membawa hujan lebat ke daerah, namun mencatat bahwa persiapan dan perbaikan yang dilakukan sejak Badai Katrina diadakan. "Isaac dibuang 10 sampai 15 inci di wilayah tersebut," katanya. "Tanggul kami dan pintu air diadakan karena mereka dirancang untuk melakukan."

Juga pada hari Kamis, Presiden Obama menyatakan bencana besar untuk Louisiana, yang melepaskan dana FEMA ke 36 paroki untuk langkah-langkah darurat. Negara bagian dan lokal upaya pemulihan akan dilengkapi dengan bantuan federal berdasarkan nilai-sharing, kata lembaga itu dalam sebuah pernyataan.

Seperti Ishak mulai menghilang ke dalam depresi tropis dan pembersihan upaya dimulai di kawasan Gulf Coast, National Weather Service melaporkan bahwa badai bernama kelima musim 2012 telah terbentuk. Kirk saat ini terletak di tengah Samudra Atlantik dan bergerak barat laut pada 12 mph. Namun, belum dianggap sebagai ancaman bagi tanah.

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