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WBRZ FLASHBACK: Capital area experienced worst tornado in its history in 1975
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BATON ROUGE — Fifty years ago, on May 8, 1975, six tornadoes touched down across Louisiana and the most devastating hit Baton Rouge.
What was categorized at the time as two F-2 tornadoes cut across Slaughter and Livingston and St. Helena parishes, ripping up homes and moving them off their foundations.
However, the brunt of the damage was closer to Baton Rouge, spanning from Broadmoor and Shenandoah to Concord Estates and Southdowns. One of the most devastating scenes was along College Drive near I-10, where the Chili’s now stands. There, 75 luxury cars at Maginni’s Imports were damaged by the debris and wind.
The wind also ripped the top off a water tower at the corner of East Roosevelt and Thomas Delpit near the north gates of LSU.
After the storms, 45 schools in East Baton Rouge Parish had to close for about a week, along with 50 percent of the area’s sewage pumping stations losing power. It’s estimated that the modern equivalent of $13 million was caused.
In Grosse Tete, downed power lines caused I-10 to be closed for nearly two days.
Watch more of WBRZ’s celebration of 70 years of local and community-driven coverage on YouTube at the playlist below:
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