WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Hurricane Laura made landfall on the Gulf Coast early Thursday morning, lashing across the Louisiana and Texas coasts as an 'extremely dangerous' storm.
Thousands of residents in these states have been told to evacuate.
'The power of Hurricane Laura is unprecedented, and Texans must take action now to get out of harm's way and protect themselves,' Texas Governor Greg Abbott said.
Abbott will visit East Texas later this morning to meet with local officials and survey the damage, his spokesperson was quoted as saying.
The Texas National Guard is headed to coastal counties with high-water vehicles and rescue helicopters to help Texans in need.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) issued a Tropical Storm Warning for East of Intracoastal City Louisiana to the Mouth of the Mississippi River.
Southwestern part of Louisiana was drenched by flash flooding and extreme winds.
According to NHC forecast, Laura will move across southwestern Louisiana this morning, and then continue northward across the state through this afternoon.
The center of Laura is forecast to move over Arkansas tonight, the mid-Mississippi Valley on Friday, and the mid-Atlantic states on Saturday.
The category 3 hurricane is expected to weaken to a tropical storm later today.
The National Hurricane Center has warned, 'Unsurvivable storm surge with large and destructive waves will cause catastrophic damage from Sea Rim State Park, Texas, to Intracoastal City, Louisiana, including Calcasieu and Sabine Lakes.'
This surge could penetrate up to 40 miles inland from the immediate coastline.
Through Friday, Laura is expected to produce up to 18 inches of rain in parts of Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas causing widespread flash and urban flooding.
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