By the Associated Press:
Thousands of Gulf Coast residents fled inland from an approaching storm deemed “unsurvivable” by forecasters, heeding warnings from leaders in two states, but leaving some without help as available space in hotels and shelters filled quickly.
Evacuees arrived as far as Ennis, Texas, a city south of Dallas that’s roughly 200 miles from the coast, as the approaching Hurricane Laura grew in power hours before its expected landfall.
Leaders in both Texas and Louisiana urged residents to flee in the final hours before landfall made it too dangerous to travel.
The storm’s power is raising fears of a 20-foot storm surge that forecasters say would be “unsurvivable” and capable of sinking entire communities on the Texas and Louisiana coast. Authorities implored coastal residents to evacuate and worried that not enough had fled.
Laura was classified as a Category 4 storm with 140 mph winds.
