LA PLACE, La. (CBS News) -- Tropical Storm Isaac is weakening as it crawls from the gulf states toward the heartland, but the storm has left a lot of damage in its wake and forced thousands from their homes.
A flash flood emergency has been declared in Slidell, outside New Orleans. Fifty people had to be rescued from their flooded homes Wednesday (8/29). Thursday, entire neighborhoods are being evacuated. Storm surge is causing a bayou to overflow. Up to five feet of flooding is expected.
In Plaquemines Parish, plans were put on hold until Saturday (9/1) to cut holes in a levee that overflowed, causing homes to flood to their rooftops. The holes would relieve the pressure and allow the water to drain back into the Mississippi and nearby marshes.
In La Place, 30 miles west of New Orleans, entire subdivisions were evacuated when Isaac's floodwaters rushed in. The sudden tidal surge caught many people off-guard.
For many, the flooding came up in the pitch black darkness of a night without power. When the sun came up, many families, like the Fraziers, had to go back in by boat. More than 3,000 people were evacuated from the La Place area alone.
In New Orleans, the rebuilt levee system held up. But power was knocked out to most of the city, and many people won't have electricity for several more days.
Two people have been killed by Isaac. One in Louisiana, and one in Mississippi.
