Sen. John Kennedy on Hurricane Laura: Louisiana looks like it was 'bombed,' toughest is yet to come
'People are in shock. But your first consideration can’t be property, it’s got to be life,' he says
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Hurricane Laura ravaged Louisiana, leaving it looking like it was "bombed," Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said on Thursday.
“I’m not going to bubble wrap it. We took it full in the face. We still are,” Kennedy told “America’s Newsroom.”
“It looks like you’ve been bombed. People are in shock. But your first consideration can’t be property, it’s got to be life… safety is still our major concern. The most important things in life aren’t things, they're people," he said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}HURRICANE LAURA BRINGS TORNADO THREAT AFTER LOUISIANA LANDFALL, LAKE CHARLES 'SEVERELY DAMAGED'
Heavy rains and winds battered Louisiana Thursday morning as a weakening Hurricane Laura roared northward, threatening to spread further damage well inland after slamming the Lake Charles area and causing at least one death.
The historic Hurricane Laura made landfall early Thursday in Cameron, about 45 miles south of Lake Charles, as a dangerous Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 150 mph. It's since weakened to a Category 1 storm.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"As we wake up today, everyone must remember that the threat Laura poses to Louisiana is ongoing," Lousiana Gov. John Bel Edwards tweeted Thursday morning. "Stay home, continue to heed the warnings and instructions of local officials, and monitor your local news to stay informed."
The first fatality from the storm in Lousiana was a 14-year-old girl who died when a tree fell on her home, according to the governor.
As the storm roared into Louisiana, a 133 mph gust and an 85 mph sustained wind were measured in Lake Charles.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A 127 mph wind gust was measured at Calcasieu Pass, La., and a sustained wind of 93 mph was measured around 5 a.m. local time in Cameron on the backside of the storm.
In Lake Charles, which took a direct hit, skyscrapers were without glass, while pieces of sheet metal and roofing were seen throughout city streets.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Based on past experience, we’ll have billions of dollars in damage," Kennedy said. "The toughest part is yet to come. When the adrenaline stops and the cameras go away and you get a little rest, you kind of look up, look at it and go, 'man, how do we rebuild here,' and you just do it by getting up in the morning, putting one foot down and then taking another step. Failure is not getting knocked down, failure is not standing back up. We’ll stand back up.”
Fox News' Travis Fedschun and Janice Dean contributed to this report.