The federal government declared a major disaster in in Louisiana. Three people have died in the floods and one person is reported missing, while about 20,000 were rescued over the weekend.
The parishes included Tangipahoa, Iberia, West Feliciana, St. Helena, East Baton, Lafayette and Livingston, from where emergency crews worked through Saturday and Sunday nights to rescue thousands of stranded people and hundreds of pets.
About 2,000 members of the National Guard are helping in the rescue operations using high water vehicles.
"We haven't been rescuing people. We've been rescuing subdivisions," Livingston Parish Sheriff Jason Ard said. "It has not stopped at all today."
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards told reporters that people were rescued, "Not just from their homes but from their vehicles.. some people, not just from their vehicles, they've been clinging to trees and other things like this in swift-moving floodwaters."
Edwards and his family had to abandon the governor's mansion after water filled their basement, cutting off their electricity.
"The simple fact is we are breaking records," Edwards said.
The governor wrote a letter to President Barack Obama informing him that rivers in Louisiana have exceeded the flood stage, and in some areas crossed the 500-year flood levels.
His request for federal assistance in emergency operations was granted, and a FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) official toured the affected parishes to gauge the extent of disaster in the state.
"We are thankful for the federal government's quick response to our request for an emergency declaration," Edwards said in a statement.
"We have record levels of flooding along rivers and creeks. And because these are record floods, we don't know how wide the water is going to get in those areas," he said. "This is unprecedented, so we don't have records that we can go back and see who all's going to be impacted."
Over 200 roads are closed in the state, and the state government offices in 27 south Louisiana parishes will be closed on August 15, according to state authorities.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), who was one of the lawmakers to write letters to Obama in support of governor Edwards request, released a statement, saying: "As people continue to be evacuated, we must do everything to help. We recognize the heroism of Louisiana citizens offering their boats, ATVs and other resources to those in need. We are already planning how to help families recover after the flood waters recede. This is a tragedy, but as we learned from North Louisiana, we shall recover."
