The National Weather Service is forecasting that East Baton Rouge Parish may receive the worst effects of Barry Saturday morning through Saturday night with double digit rain amounts over the course of the next several days and tropical storm force sustained winds of 30-50 mph and gusts of up to 60 mph.
The City-Parish took steps today to drain the Capitol Lake by 2 feet in order to provide additional rain capacity. DPW crews used the pump station near the State Capitol to pump water out of the Capitol Lake and into the Mississippi River. This will assist with additional storage capacity and prevent flooding at the I-110 curve.
As of today, the City-Parish has distributed approximately 665 tons of sand and 96,000 sand bags to all EBR Parish sand and sandbag locations. Additional sand and sandbags are being delivered today to all locations, including the newly opened Government St. at S. 22nd (2147 Government St). Sand and Sandbag deliveries will continue until 7pm tonight.
Garbage and recycling services are canceled on Saturday, July 13, due to the threat of high winds and rain. The landfill is also closed on July 13th.
Be sure to visit the Emergency Page for the most up-to-date information on Tropical Storm Barry.