“LAKE PROVIDENCE, La.—Army engineers prepared Saturday to slowly open the gates of an emergency spillway along the rising Mississippi River, diverting floodwaters from Baton Rouge and New Orleans, but inundating homes and farms in parts of Louisiana’s Cajun country.
About 25,000 people and 11,000 structures could be in harm’s way when the Morganza spillway is unlocked for the first time in 38 years. Sheriffs and national guardsmen were warning people in a door-to-door sweep through the area, and shelters were ready to accept up to 4,800 evacuees, Gov. Bobby Jindal said.
Some people living in the threatened stretch of countryside—an area known for small farms, fish camps and a drawling French dialect—have already started fleeing for higher ground.
“Now’s the time to evacuate,” Mr. Jindal said. “Now’s the time for our people to execute their plans. That water’s coming.”
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