BAYTOWN, Texas — For many evacuees, the trip out of Louisiana was not an easy one. Many of them said they weren't willing to take any chances so they packed what they could and left.
As soon as Hurricane Ida started forming in the Gulf, PTSD started to kick in for many southwest Louisiana residents.
"You can imagine everyone went through the emotions ... please don’t hit Louisiana again. We went through a lot last year," Paula Patin said.
Patin lives in the Lafayette area and she said the southwest part of Louisiana has had a tough year. It all started when Hurricane Laura hit them in August 2020. It was a Category 4 hurricane.
"And obviously 6 weeks later we got hit by hurricane Delta. Then a few months later the winter storm in February. Then a few months later the flooding in May," said Patin.
She feels like they can’t catch a break, and because of that, she packed what she could and headed to Texas.
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"I just didn’t want to go through any chance that it might go east or west and I would end up being more impacted by the storm," Patin said.
Even though she said she feels lucky the hurricane missed them, she knows the recovery for her neighbors to the east won’t be easy.
"It's going to be rough for them and I really hope the best for everyone in southeast Louisiana because they are going to need it," Patin said.