NAIFA members in Louisiana are impacted both directly and indirectly by ongoing flooding in the state. The flooding, which began a week ago, is likely to result in excess of a billion dollars in damage and has so far claimed at least 13 lives. The federal government has declared 12 parishes to be disaster areas, and thousands of people have lost nearly everything they own. A Red Cross spokesperson called the flooding the worst U.S. disaster since Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

Many NAIFA members have begun helping their clients assess the damage and begin the recovery process.

While New Orleans was spared from flooding this time, Constance Buisson, association executive for NAIFA-Greater New Orleans, said in an email to NAIFA-National, “We all have family, friends and clients that have just lost everything and it happened so quickly.  It’s just so sad.  I know many of our members are spending much time reaching out to their clients impacted.  Please keep them all in your prayers.”

NAIFA is a member of the National Business Emergency Operations Center (NBEOC) and is helping the Federal Emergency Management Administration gather situational awareness information on the disaster.

For those able to help, the state of Louisiana has a web site where individuals and businesses can volunteer for flood-recovery efforts or donate to disaster-relief organizations.

Additionally, NAIFA-Greater New Orleans is collecting supplies for those affected. Details are available on the NAIFA-GNO web site.

The NAIFA-Louisiana Facebook page is another resource for information and relief efforts.