HOME / NEWS / HUMAN INTEREST

Chilling video shows Hurricane Ida ripping off Lady of the Sea Hospital's roof

A video emerged of the roof of the Lady of the Sea Hospital in Louisiana being torn off due to high winds. Locals say patients are still inside

As Hurricane Ida makes its way through Louisiana, social media footage of the devastation has become a common sight. Some daring users have managed to brave the wind and water to record the effects of the storm, such as those responsible for the subject of this story. On August 29, footage emerged of the hurricane tearing away the roof of a hospital in Galliano, Louisiana, reportedly with patients still inside.

Approaching Category 5 level, Hurricane Ida has caused FEMA to spring into action and deploy 2,000 employees to all affected states. With the hurricane making landfall, videos have now begun to emerge all too frequently. Earlier, we saw terrifying footage of flooding on the only road in and out of the island of Grand Isle in Louisiana. On a slightly lighter note, we also got footage of journalist Al Roker, who was drenched while reporting on the storm. It inspired a lot of memes and jokes, as well as some concern NBC was trying to kill its star meteorologist.

RELATED ARTICLES

Hurricane Ida: emergency numbers, weather details to know as LA prepares for storm

Hurricane Ida: Elite Miami Task Force 2 that battled Katrina heads to Louisiana

There was little funny about the latest viral video though, particularly if some claims are to be believed. Reportedly, the hospital is the Lady of the Sea Hospital in Galliano, Lafourche parish, where patients are still inside because they have "nowhere to go". It certainly is a tragic story, but right now all we can do is hope and pray that everyone is safe and dry. 

Hospital roof ripped off

The video was uploaded by NBC news to Twitter, reportedly by a local of Galliano. It shows the hospital roof being ripped off, and flying away, as a shocked observer records from nearby. "Oh my God!" one person can be heard screaming. It's only about 13 seconds long, but it serves as a reminder of just how powerful Hurricane Ida is. It has quickly since been shared by numerous other journalists, much to the horror of some social media users. 

If the images themselves are terrifying, it might shock you to learn that the hospital was reportedly unable to evacuate. We have not been able to verify this fact, but it is a claim being made by numerous locals on social media. Reportedly, the hospital is still filled with patients because they have "nowhere else to go". Due to the double whammy posed by Covid-19 and the hurricane, almost all hospitals in Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi, and even Alabama are filled. 

One user also claimed, "They only have hours of generator power, and are hand bagging those who need to breathe…per a nurse there." Again, we have not been able to verify this fact, but it appears likely given that the storm has led to a power loss. No injuries have been reported, as per ABC News. A hospitalization tracking website shows that 87% of beds at the hospital have been occupied on average this week, with a total of 11 patients hospitalized due to Covid-19 on average.