LATEST: Beryl victim identified. Over 5000 still without power in Bossier Parish
Plus — How to report damage to the state.
Bossier City weather — Today: Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of showers with isolated thunderstorms this morning, then partly cloudy this afternoon. Highs in the mid-80s. West winds 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph. Chance of rain 20%. Tonight: Mostly clear. Lows in the upper 60s. Wednesday: Mostly sunny. Highs in the lower 90s.
After Beryl: Benton woman dies, over 5,000 still without power in Bossier Parish
Updated 2:43 p.m. 7/9/2024
Tropical Storm Beryl ravaged the Bossier Parish area Monday, causing widespread damage and one death. Kaylan Logan, a 31-year-old Benton resident, died when a tree fell on her home on E. Linton Road near Crouch Road.
Logan and her two young children were taking shelter when a pine tree fell onto their mobile home. The children survived.
The National Weather Service in Shreveport reports that 67 tornado warnings were reported throughout the agency's service area.
"Today's weather events across our region in the wake of Hurricane Beryl's remnants are further proof that inland tropical impacts can also be quite extreme," the weather agency said. "In this case, it was the tornado threat that superseded everything else, including flash flooding. A total of 67 tornado warnings were issued across NWS Shreveport's coverage area, easily the most in a single day event."
Many trees and powerlines have been reported down, and over a dozen parish roads are covered in debris. As of 2:30 p.m. this afternoon, 5,092 customers in Bossier Parish were still without power — 8% of SWEPCO customers in the parish.
"With ongoing confirmed tornadoes across the ArkLaTex service area, there have been impacts to our energy delivery system. As a result, additional outages could occur until SWEPCO’s transmission system is stabilized," the power company said in a statement. "Customers should prepare to be without service for an extended period. Our teams will be working as soon as possible to safely get the power restored."
The Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office reports one path of destruction began in the southern part of the parish in Elm Grove, with damage extending up to the Highway 2 area in Plain Dealing.
Other areas reporting extensive damage in the parish are the Bellevue/Wafer Road areas in Haughton, Linton-Bellevue/Crouch Road area and the Old Plain Dealing Road area in Benton.
Sheriff Whittington says that Bossier deputies responded to 72 weather-related calls during the storm, ranging from downed powerlines and trees blocking roads to trees on structures.
Work crews are still cleaning up some of the heavily affected areas and roads, and people are urged to stay away from those areas so cleanup can continue. No roads in the parish are closed; however, some are limited to one lane of travel.
Sheriff Whittington urges the public to stay away from areas that were heavily damaged by storms.
How to report storm damage
The Bossier Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness asks residents to report any storm damage to their homes caused by Tropical Storm Beryl as soon as possible at www.Damage.LA.Gov.
Damage.LA.Gov is an initiative under Virtual Louisiana that allows citizens to self-report damages after disasters such as hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, wildfires, and winter weather.
If Tropical Storm Beryl has damaged your residence, click the link above to begin the reporting process.
Here are some notes and tips for filling out and submitting your damage report. Take multiple photos from different angles, including close-ups, specific points of damage, and pictures of the entire structure. Remember, your safety is paramount. Never put yourself in danger to take photos or submit a report.
• Make sure your photos aren't blurry or obscured.
• Use the comments field to help describe the damage and supplement your photos.
• Double-check your address and the location pin on the in-survey map.
• Don't submit reports of non-residential structures or outbuildings (barns, carports, fences, or cars).
• Don't submit damage reports to businesses.
• Don't submit multiple reports for the same residence.
• Don't put yourself in danger to take photos or submit a report.
Your reports help parish, state, and federal authorities better understand the location and severity of damage impacts. That information can also help expedite the individual assistance process following major disasters and emergencies.
Read updates throughout the day at BossierNow as more details of the Beryl aftermath become available.
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