{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.cassidy.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/cassidy-secures-down-payment-for-la-flood-victims", "Cassidy Secures Down Payment for LA Flood Victims", "2016-09-28", "2016", "2016-09", "Republican", "House", "LA", "Bill Cassidy", "C001075", "www.cassidy.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Let me repeat that one more time:\r\n\u00a0\r\nThe flooding caused 8.7 billion dollars in damages\u2014making it, besides hurricanes, the most expensive natural disaster to occur in our country in the last 100 years.\r\n\u00a0\r\nNo one was prepared. Less than a quarter of the population even had flood insurance because the flooding occurred in areas that are more than 50 feet above sea level, where people were told they were not in a flood zone or at low-risk of flooding. They were never told that they needed to buy insurance.\r\n\u00a0\r\nWe have thousands of families that were completely caught off guard, unprepared, by a freak of nature thousand-year flood and are now struggling to pick up the pieces. They need our help. They are trying to make a decision on whether to stay in their damaged homes and try to rebuild or just move on.\u00a0 It is our duty to make sure that these families have the resources they need to recover and to rebuild.\r\n\u00a0\r\nHere you can see a family being evacuated by volunteers. This is a residential street. Water is that high inside their house too and all they were able to salvage is in the bags in their hands. All their belongings now\u2014beds, clothes, pictures, family heirlooms\u2014are more than likely in a debris pile on the side of the street. Meanwhile, they have to make the serious decision on whether they can afford to rebuild. This is only one family. So far, over 145,000 people have applied for Individual Assistance through FEMA. They need to know if that assistance is coming.\r\n\u00a0\r\nLet me remind you of Dorothy Brooks\u2014she is 78 years old\u2014 this picture shows her being rescued from her home, through three feet of floodwater, by Tangipahoa Sheriff\u2019s Office Sargent Thomas Wheeler. Dorothy, who relies on a wheelchair, did not have the time, let alone the ability to prepare her home for the rapid flooding. Imagine the fear she felt, being handicapped, watching the flood waters rise around her. Seniors like Dorothy who have returned to their homes are encountering further obstacles. Because of their age, they are unable to carry out the labor necessary to properly clear out their homes to prevent the spread of mold. They need help.\r\n\u00a0\r\nLet me also remind you of Roy and Vera Rodney, both in their 80s, had 4 inches of water enter their house. The FEMA inspector told them their home was habitable so they were denied repairs and rental assistance. With no family in town to help them gut and repair their house, they were forced to let all of their water damaged carpet, furniture and belongings\u2014just sit. It didn\u2019t take long for mold to appear and their house became too unhealthy to live in. They evacuated to distant family. While there, they were not available to have volunteers gut their home, so they had to reschedule. In the weeks they were forced to wait, their home remained ungutted and mold spread everywhere. Because they could not get the aid they needed, their cost of recovery only grew with time.\r\n\u00a0\r\nOur state is in crisis and for some reason the unparalleled severity of this natural disaster has been overlooked. To delay this aid would be devastating for the people of Louisiana. It is crucial that Congress approves funding before it leaves for the fall recess. \r\n\u00a0\r\nHelping each other is a fundamental American value, I enlist all of my colleagues to support this legislation - to help families faced with losing their homes and everything they own. To help folks pick up the pieces and put their lives back together. Let\u2019s do what\u2019s right and pass the legislation and pass relief for flood victims\u2014I yield back.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.cassidy.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/cassidy-secures-down-payment-for-la-flood-victims"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8228132501244545, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}