Louisiana Nurses Stayed in NICU Even After Hurricane Laura Hit to Care for 19 Babies

Louisiana nurses stayed in NICU despite the city being hit by Hurricane Laura. The NICU staff knew that they had to keep the 19 babies safe through the Category 4 storm.

On Thursday, Dr. Juan Bossano told CNN that it is essential to know the dedication of the hospital staff. He said that he is proud of them because they have put everything together despite not knowing what is happening in their homes. He noted that the respiratory therapists and nurses took care of the babies during these scary times.

(Photo: Instagram/lakecharlesmemorial)

Hurricane was headed for the city

Lake Charles City had mandatory evacuation order in place because the hurricane was headed for their city. The National Weather Service reported that the city got some of the worst storms. It noted that the wind gusts have an hour of 120 to 135 mph as the eyewall crossed.

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Staff put up with the hard situation

A neonatologist for greater than 30 years, Dr. Bossano, said that the staff had their hands full. He explained that some babies were on respirators and ventilators, while others were premature, some at just 23 weeks. In the middle of the night, there was no air conditioning since the water went out in the hospital.

Lake Charles Memorial Hospital for Women vice president and administrator, Alesha Alford, saw how well the staff acted in an uncertain situation. She said that they had to move their patients into the hallways when the winds got so bad. She noted that staff were with the patients sleeping in hallways.

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Dr. Bossano posted on his Facebook page update of the condition of the babies in the NICU during the rough night. He wrote that the babies were doing better than the rest of the people to help calm the fears of many parents.

Threat of flood

Earlier that day, the threat of flooding has forced the little ones to be evacuated to the main hospital. The hospital's director of communications, Matt Felder, said that they were able to transfer the 19 NICU babies in two hours.

Doctors, residents, the sheriff's department, and many others helped move the precious cargo and all the needed equipment to keep the babies safe. Alford said that he has never seen something work so fast and smoothly for an unexpected event.

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Water service knocked out

On Thursday evening, Laura knocked out most of the water service in the city said City Administrator John Cardone. One of them was the main hospital. So they had to transfer the NICU babies again.

Felder said that they will move the tiny patients to other hospitals since Lake Charles only has two NICUs. Dr. Bossano said that he got a couple of hours of sleep in the morning in between transfers because the babies were stable.

There was a chorus of cheering when they were able to move the first patient to another hospital. Felder said that it gives off the light during the horrific tragedy in the community.