Louisiana flood victims offered relief from local churches

Chiqui Guyjoco Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Several churches in Louisiana canceled worship services to extend assistance to flood victims while one local church paid back its community by serving as a designated relief center.

An airboat brings rescued residents to safety in Ascension Parish, Louisiana. | Reuters/Jonathan Bachman

The state of Louisiana suffered Aug. 11 more than 12 inches of flood water in just eight hours. According to the Weather Station, the calamity resulted from the combination of tropical moisture and low-pressure area, which it described as "like an inland tropical depression." It added that the heavy rainfall in the southeast parts of Louisiana exceeded the amount of rain that's fallen in other U.S. cities over the past recent years.

The First Methodist of Denham Springs saw this historic flooding as their "time to pay it forward." The local church survived various calamities in the past such as flooding in the 1920s, fire in the 1970s and another fire in 2011. Since then, it positioned itself on the forefront of providing assistance to its supportive community.

The Red Cross designated the church on Aug. 12 as a relief and staging area for the south Louisiana flooding.

"Our church quickly did the work to position itself as a disaster relief center as a way to pay it forward. In the fall of 2014, we arranged to become a local Red Cross shelter," Louisiana Conference of the United Methodist Church quoted Rev. Jacqueline King as saying.

Rev. King also spoke of the selfless acts of his church members.

"Some of the church members themselves are dealing with their own flooding issues; either in their subdivisions or homes," he said. "Yet, they've risen from those challenges to help. I couldn't be more proud. It is difficult and challenging but so incredibly rewarding to be the hands and feet of Christ."

According to KPEL, several church leaders decided to cancel both their Saturday and Sunday services because of the flooding in Acadiana. These churches include Crossroads Church, Faith Lutheran Church, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and First Presbyterian Church.