Abbeville, Vermilion Parish spared from worst of Hurricane Delta’s impact
Andrew CappsABBEVILLE, La. — After what proved to be a quiet night for emergency responders in Vermilion Parish as Hurricane Delta made landfall near Creole on Friday, Abbeville was largely spared from flooding but high winds and fallen trees left their mark as daylight came Saturday.
In Vermilion Parish, where storm surge pushed one coastal buoy to a record 10.6 feet overnight, the power outage is nearly universal with some 22,000 SLEMCO and Entergy customers without electricity Saturday morning before crews could begin work.
High speed winds in Abbeville late Friday night caused minor destruction downtown, with shattered windows and damaged roofs coming to light at Saturday's sunrise.
A pair of buildings on North State Street downtown lost windows in Friday night’s storm, which saw winds hit 46 mph about 4 p.m. Friday before the weather station at Abbeville’s airport temporarily went out. In nearby New Iberia, winds peaked at 86 mph just before 7 p.m.
Street lights and traffic signals downtown were out Saturday morning, while branches and twigs blown out of trees littered streets of unlit houses.
Large trees were uprooted across town. Many trees took the city’s power lines with them on their way to the ground. Crews were out as soon as the sun rose Saturday to remove them from roadways.
The Abbeville Fire Department had four crews out with chainsaw removing downed trees, Fire Chief Jude Mire said Saturday morning. Damage to structures was limited, though one building on Greene Street was hit directly and a gas station on Park Avenue was severely damaged by wind.
Despite storm surge forecasts that projected flooding in lower lying areas of the city, Abbeville seemed to be largely spared of flood waters Saturday morning after Hurricane Delta dropped between 2-3 inches of rainfall Friday night.
The Vermilion River swelled into some backyards, backing up the Valcourt Coulee near the city’s residential historic district, but floodwaters appeared to spare nearby homes.
Follow Andrew Capps for breaking news and updates on Twitter.