Leaders around the state are breathing a sigh of relief after the effects of Hurricane Francine in Louisiana garnered less destruction than the hurricane could have had under more powerful circumstances.

That relief was felt especially in Iberia Parish, which was predicted to be near the center of the hurricane that reached a Category 2 at its height. An eastward veer that caused the storm to make landfall in Terrebonne Parish instead of St. Mary Parish caused Teche Area residents to sustain some heavy winds and rainfall, but nothing more dangerous than that.

Speaking Thursday, Gov. Jeff Landry thanked the countless people who offered their prayers to Louisiana residents as they spent the early portion of the week preparing for the effects of Francine.

“I am elated those prayers worked because right now we have no reports of storm related fatalities,” Landry said. “We want to keep it that way.”

Iberia Parish did feel some effects of the storm, however. Several roads were obstructed due to trees falling down as a result of Francine, particularly on Darby Lane, French Street and Audry Street.

Parish President Larry Richard said Thursday that he was thankful for his administrative team and the first responders who worked tirelessly to aid the people of Iberia Parish.

“As we transition into the recovery phase, our teams are actively working to clear road hazards, restore power, and address any public need,” Richard said in a prepared statement. “We remain committed to working diligently until we fully restore normalcy for our residents.”

St. Mary Parish also took its fair share of damage, with tree damage and wind damage damaging some homes in the Franklin area. Mayor Eugene Foulcard, however, said that 90% of power outages were restored by Thursday evening.

Landry estimated about 450,000 Louisiana residents lost their power as a result of Francine, and linemen were out all over the state to remedy the problem.

By Friday, a Cleco spokesperson said that Cleco had assessed damage across 95% of the affected areas and found 67 broken poles and 390 spans of downed wire.

“Now that most of the impacted areas have been assessed for damage, we are able to offer additional estimated times for power restoration,” Cleco Director of Distribution Clint Robichaux. “We expect full power restoration in St. Tammany and Washington parishes by Saturday, and customers in St. Mary Parish will be restored by Sunday.”