LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Groups from Kentuckiana have made the trip to Louisiana and Texas to help those impacted by Hurricane Laura.
LG&E said they have sent 208 employees and contractors down to assist with power restoration. Spokesperson Natasha Collins said they left on Sunday to get into place ahead of the storm.
Crews sent are mostly line technicians and damage assessors, with most heading to Baton Rouge to work with a power company in the area.
Collins said crews will take all COVID-19 precautions and are equipped with PPE to remain safe.
Twenty Red Cross workers also made the trip to provide shelter for those forced out of their homes.
"It's extremely important for us to go and help those folks that need it," said Red Cross Kentucky Region CEO, Steve Cunanan.
"They're providing clients assistance and they're also providing mental health assistance. Sometimes we forget during these things it's very mentally taxing."
Red Cross workers are also helping differently than before as people remain mindful of the ongoing pandemic.
"You have to maintain social distancing, you have to wear masks, you have to have enhanced cleaning procedures in place, enhanced eating positions in place," Cunanan said. "So the level of difficulty, if it wasn't already difficult enough to run a shelter, it just became two times more difficult to do that."
He said he's proud to see Kentuckians stepping up to help.
"They have gone ahead and put their life on hold for a while and they don't know when they're going to be back, and I give them a lot of credit."
Four people have been killed by falling trees across Louisiana after the hurricane made landfall early Thursday.
A 14-year-old girl was killed when a tree fell into her home. A 60-year-old man was also killed when a tree fell on him, while the governor's office confirmed a third person was also killed by a falling tree.
At his afternoon press briefing Thursday, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said a fourth person was killed.
►Make it easy to keep up-to-date with more stories like this. Download the WHAS11 News app now. For Apple or Android users.
Have a news tip? Email assign@whas11.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter feed.