Residents of Louisiana struggle for dry land

More than 10,000 people are in shelters, state governor says

Barbara Manuel saw a flicker of sun and that gave her hope that the worst of the horrific flooding to hit southern Louisiana was over. But then the skies ripped open, the lights in her house started to flicker and with nearly one meter of water outside threatening to come in and two young kids to care for, she knew it was time to get out.

"I've never seen anything like this before," Manuel said, speaking on the side of the road as she was about to get in a National Guard vehicle. The 41-year-old is one of more than 20,000 people rescued from their homes as of Sunday as rain-swollen rivers flooded their banks and wreaked havoc across southern Louisiana.