Thousands Flee As Hurricane Laura Prepares To Bash US Gulf Coast [PHOTOS]

Over half a million people have been ordered to evacuate the Gulf Coast as Hurricane Laura is expected to slam Texas and Louisiana with ferocious winds and heavy flooding.

The move is the largest evacuation in the United States in recent times amid the pandemic.

More than 385,000 residents were told to flee the area while another 200,000 were ordered to leave low-lying Calcasieu Parish in southwestern Louisiana, where forecasters predict as much as 13 feet (4 meters) of storm surge topped by waves could submerge entire communities.

John Bel Edwards, Louisiana Governor, stated that Hurricane Laura is shaping up to be like Hurricane Rita, a similar natural phenomenon that ravaged southwest Louisiana 15 years ago.

See more pictures of people fleeing the area below: