Allen Parish - What Happened

Hurricane Rita struck Allen Parish in the early morning hours on Sept. 24, 2005. Allen Parish was spared the 16-foot storm surge that covered the coastal parishes of Cameron and Vermilion and moved northward into Calcasieu. Although Rita passed approximately 60 miles west of the parish, it still caused more than five hours of hurricane-force winds in excess of 110 mph, and more than 350 tornadoes in the area. Trees were snapped off and roofs were damaged, especially in the southern part of the parish. Saturated soil and approximately 20 hours of tropical storm force winds (60 to 70 mph) following the storm uprooted many large trees and caused further damage to buildings and property. Over the next week, power outages, heat and humidity caused additional damage from mold and mildew.

Allen Parish was under a voluntary evacuation order, but with 12-mile traffic backups from the east, west and south, only a few parish residents evacuated. There were no confirmed storm-related deaths and relatively few significant injuries.

Allen Parish dealt with approximately 1,200 Katrina evacuees and an additional 10,000 new evacuees seeking shelter from Rita, together representing a 50 percent increase in total population. In addition, thousands of emergency personnel and equipment (police and fire vehicles, ambulances, backhoes, etc.) from Calcasieu and Jefferson Davis Parishes relocated to southern Allen Parish, adding to traffic problems and emergency shelter requirements.