The American Press

Today marks the 60th anniversary of Hurricane Audrey, one of the most devastating storms to ever strike the United States of America.

In the early morning hours of June 27, 1957, the Category 4 storm roared ashore, obliterating structures, vehicles and everything else in her path. 

The storm surge that followed was accompanied by a wind-blown wave that the National Weather Bureau later estimated to be 40 to 50 feet in height at the shoreline.

The communities of Oak Grove, Holly Beach, Grand Chenier and Little Chenier bore the brunt of Audrey’s fury when she landed ashore and were almost completely wiped off the map, according to an American Press report.  

The storm surge carried buildings and debris 25 miles inland before it played out.

Death tolls and casualty lists shortly after Audrey recorded more than 520 dead, 191 missing, 3,883 injured and 200 hospitalized, the newspaper reported. 

More than 400 were killed in Cameron Parish alone. 

Audrey reached winds of 125 mph and would ultimately cause about $147 million in widespread property and infrastructure damage. It destroyed 1,316 homes, damaged another 1,206 and wiped out 640 farm buildings. 

The sturdy concrete and steel Cameron Parish courthouse served as a life raft for 2,000 who escaped Audrey’s fury, according to the American Press. 

“The courthouse survived, and so can we,” survivors told the newspaper.

Hurricane Audrey — the name was later retired from the list of names used for an Atlantic hurricane — changed the way the National Weather Service reports and distributes information about hurricanes. The accuracy of weather forecasts and the dissemination of weather information and evacuation updates have improved exponentially.

Audrey caused much grief, death and destruction, but the strength of the spirit of the people who survived shows the fortitude of Southwest Louisiana.