State prison inmate crews and Department of Correction officers have been involved in sandbagging operations. The government of Louisiana announces in a press release of May 26, 2011, that prisoners in the work release program “have filled/ placed more than 538,000 sandbags to date.”
In Avoyelles Parish, the areas around Spring Bayou, Big Bend, and Brouillette are the most affected by the flood. But due to low rainfall amounts, the rivers are not as high as previously expected, and water levels are falling. Many Avoyelleans are relieved.
The Mississippi River flooding forced between three and four thousand people in Louisiana to evacuate their homes. About thirty families have found refuge in the mobile housing units of Magnaville (aka Canadaville) near Simmesport in Avoyelles Parish. Magnaville originally served as a shelter for hurricane Katrina evacuees of New Orleans from 2005 through 2010.
Photo Gallery: Aerial View of Cenla Flooding (The Alexandria Town Talk)
