Members of the Louisiana Air National Guard 159th Fighter Wing handing out ice, diapers and MREs at the Allen Parish Civic Center.

Teche Area lawmakers still marvel at the power of Hurricane Laura following their hurricane relief trip to a small town in Allen Parish days after the storm disrupted life in the region.

The aid trip was to Oberlin, almost an hour northeast of Cameron Parish, where Hurricane Laura made landfall on Aug. 27.

State Reps. Vinny St. Blanc of Franklin, Marcus Bryant of St. Martinville and Beau Beaullieu of Iberia, along with Mike Wattigny of Iberia’s CERT (Community Emergency Response Team), joined State Reps Stuart Bishop of Lafayette, Bryan Fontenot of Thibodaux, and Jean-Paul Coussan of Lafayette, for the relief.

St. Blanc said the trip was kicked off by Speaker of the House Clay Schexnayder of Gonzales, who was trying to organize a group of legislators to help out areas represented by fellow State Reps. Troy Romero of Jennings and Dewith Carrier of Oakdale.

“They had a big crew going to the Lake Charles area, but he said the smaller, rural areas were not getting any attention,” St. Blanc said. “And boy, was he right. We fed the National Guard in Oberlin, first responders in Jennings and Deridder, and the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office. We fed over 600 people.

“Our team brought tents, a mobile kitchen, over 600 links of sausage, buns, chips and over 1,000 bottles of water,” St. Blanc added. “Each state rep. acquired or paid for something”

St. Blanc, who represents St. Mary and lower St. Martin parishes, said his heart goes out to the people of Southwest Louisiana.

“The total devastation will be a scar, seen for many years to come,” he said. “However, these good folks will rebuild. They have the tenacity to do so.”

Beaullieu said this was his first experience with a hurricane outside of Iberia Parish.

“It reminded me so much of what we went through with Hurricane Andrew, but there was one huge difference,” he said. “We’re blessed with resources here in Iberia, unlike the poor rural areas of our state, which are very limited with opportunity.”

Beaullieu said the group had to maneuver around power lines which were down everywhere before setting up shop with a Red Cross Response Team in the stadium parking lot at Oberlin High School.

“I’d also like to thank Evangeline Bread of Lafayette, who donated all of the bread for the sandwiches that we made” he said. “I can tell you that Hurricane Laura’s impact is just unfathomable, because the damage was vast. My heart really goes out to all the folks who live in Southwest Louisiana.”

Beaullieu also thanked Wattigny, who drove to deliver 200 meals to the Beauregard Sheriff’s Office.

Wattigny said he saw “a lot of people working hard, cots everywhere and a lot of downed trees,” when he arrived.

“That area was hit very hard,” Wattigny said. “It almost looked like a forest, with the devastation. Beauregard Parish Sheriff Mark Herford is a friend of mine, so I was very happy to be there to help, and they were very happy to have it all.”

He said the experience was sort of a déja vu when it came to the National Guard and military police helping to organize lines for gasoline.

“The difference here was that there is only one gas station,” Wattigny said. “Just imagine the people waiting in lines miles long, for gas.”

“Being on this trip caused me to realize how important it is to consider populations that live outside of major cities,” Bryant said. “They cannot be and should not be forgotten.”

The District 96 state representative said he continued his portion of the trip, driving to another small town, Tullis.

“My crew was the only help those folks had seen,” he said. “If we would have not gone, they would have had no ice and gas, and no generators.”

Bryant said he is calling on community and church groups who want to help to visit the smaller cities around Southwest Louisiana who are not receiving any attention.

“This hurricane was worse than Rita, even Katrina,” Bryant said. “The need is great, ya’ll. I would also like to thank Cash Savers of St. Martinville, who donated a tremendous amount of potato chips.”

Family members and friends went on the lawmakers’ relief trip, including Ed “Tiger” Verdin, a friend of St. Blanc’s, who captured the outreach on video. He said he heard a heartbreaking story from a couple, who flagged him down to their front yard. They told him their house had been totaled.

“It was ironic however, because the front of the house looked normal,” Verdin said. “But a look from the back of the house showed a tree had fallen over the side of the house, which lifted the entire house beyond the front living room, and destroyed the inside. I saw their washer and dryer was crushed as a result of tree impact, and it was hanging on a branch of the tree, from inside the attic.”