Animals hit hard by flooding in Plaquemines Parish

Plaquemines Parish, La. – Residents in Plaquemines Parish have been some of the hardest hit by Hurricane Isaac.

A KPRC Local 2 crew took an airboat down a flooded stretch of Highway 23 and saw entire livelihoods under water.

Flooded homes and fields are all over. In one of those fields were two ranchers who needed help.

The ranchers got on board and went to check out their ranch. Floodwaters from Barataria Bay filled their ranch.

The ranchers jumped into the water to lead the surviving cows out of their pen and to higher ground. Many of the cows were so exhausted from fighting the floods for two days that they needed help just to hold their heads up.

Many of their cows did not survive.

The ranchers' dog managed to beat the odds. During the trip, the Local 2 crew found their Great Dane clinging to a pile of floating debris.

Alligators were everywhere.

In addition to their loss of livestock, the ranchers also lost their home. The water rose too quickly for them to save anything.

The ranchers said this was the third time they've gone through flooding.

"This was the worst," Khai Nguyen said. "I thought the last two times was bad. This time was worse than the last one. I love it, but it's just coming to a point where I'm going to have to throw my hands up."

The ranchers said they were furious because the area where they live is outside of the federal levee system that protects New Orleans. They said everyone who lives in the area has been asking for more protection for years.

"They're dragging their feet back and forth," Tuan Nguyen said. "If we got a good levee back there, we wouldn't have any problem."

Louisiana state Sen. David Heitmeier represents the ranchers' district. He said he's been asking Congress to provide federal funding to include their area.

"It's fell on deaf ears so far," Heitmeier said. "This is another devastation. Hopefully we'll have people open up their ears and understand how important lower Louisiana, Plaquemines Parish, is to the nation."

Plaquemines Parish is an area rich in oil and gas, agriculture and seafood.