People in Louisiana continue to clean up from Hurricane Ida. Nearly a million people are still without power.

This week, Indiana Task Force One has been near New Orleans, helping with relief efforts.

Chief Gerald George says his team traveled down south last Friday, before the storm hit the Gulf Coast. They stayed in Lafayette, Louisiana, where they received rain and wind, but remained safe from the flooding and storm surge. Once the worst of Ida blew through, Indiana Task Force One was called in to help with cleanup in Jefferson Parish.

“We expected a little more flooding,” George said. “We probably dealt with more trees down and power lines down, especially on I-10, so we had to take the back roads.”

Once they arrived, they got to work, checking on residents.

“It kind of looks like a big tornado went through,” he said. “Damage to structures, damage to buildings. Trees down on homes, homes completely destroyed by the wind that was produced by the hurricane. There’s some low-level flooding. Some areas to the south have some flooding that hasn’t receded but everyone has been accounted for and taken care of in those areas.”

Today, they’ll finish up going street-to-street, house-to-house, making sure there aren’t any residents that still need medical assistance, and will continue to help with cleanup efforts. After that, they’ll check back in with local law enforcement and see if they’re assigned another task.

George says some residents in Louisiana, especially in rural areas, won’t have power restored for another 2-3 weeks.