calling unsurvivable storm surge. here comes the first bands of hurricane laura. it s only going to get worse. hurricane hunters flying into laura s eye today. the storm now more than 400 miles across. the surge from this storm is going to push water for miles inland, at a height of 10 to 15 feet. that s water easily up and over my head. that s up and over this roofline. the surge will be even higher than that near the coast. and it s coming in the middle of the night. we met freddie rosteet, who has to ride out the storm at this lake charles blood bank. we re hoping that this wall does what it was made for. reporter: so that he can supply hospitals with needed blood. i ve been doing it for 30 years and that s what i m here for. reporter: louisiana s governor activating the entire national guard. trucks that can be used for high water rescues staging north of new orleans. and if you think you re safe because you made it through rita in southwest louisiana, understand this sto
tonight, several breaking headlines as we come on the air. the category 4 hurricane bearing down on the u.s. at this hour. winds up to 145 miles per hour. this is an extremely dangerous cat 4 storm, only a few hours from landfall. authorities tonight warning of, quote, unsurvivable storm surge. blinding rain and winds already, mass evacuations under way as time now runs out. families trying to find shelter in the middle of a pandemic. authorities concerned about too many families staying put, trying to ride this out. louisiana s governor tonight activating the entire national guard. meteorologists ginger zee and rob marciano, both live in the storm zone tonight with the latest track and timing. also developing as we come on, chilling images on the streets of kenosha, wisconsin.
reporter: the military evacuating b-52s from barksdale air force base. our matt gutman in beaumont, texas. and officials are especially concerned about beaumont and port arthur, home to 55% of the nation s strategic oil reserves, most of its jet fuel and also some of the biggest refineries in the country. reporter: back in lake charles, the mayor tells me he s worried too many have decided to ride it out. i m going to be honest, i am concerned that we didn t have the evacuation numbers that we probably should have. so, let s get right to rob marciano, live from lake charles tonight, and rob, i know it s the surge and the winds. what are you expecting where you are? reporter: we could see winds over 100 miles an hour, david. and we don t usually say that with any sort of confidence, but this storm is an absolute beast. extremely dangerous. it s going to cut across louisiana like a giant tornado. not to mention the storm surge that could be catastrophic. it s just going to be
immediate path. we got turned down for buses because my mother has corona. reporter: in austin, frustration when evacuees from the storm zone hoping for hotel rooms were told there were no more vouchers. they were supposed to have, you know, something for us. give me a tent, i don t care, something. reporter: and tonight, concern over pets and livestock, too. in winnie, texas, officials shutting down a bridge to help ranchers get 1,100 cattle to higher ground. back in galveston, mark and jenna metzger are staying in part to keep an eye on their 90-year-old neighbor. what about the people who will say, you re absolutely crazy for deciding to stay here? well, then they ve never been in this situation before. you know, a lot of people that choose to ride out these storms, like our neighbors and myself, we ve been in these situations our entire life. reporter: david, here in galveston tonight, officials are most concerned about strong winds knocking out power and also the storm
and one of the real concerns here, it is going to hit right in the middle of the night. and just look at the size and scope of this hurricane. these images from the international space station. it is 400 miles across. the center of the storm still over the warm waters of the gulf, which, as you know, fuel this. the effects already being felt tonight. more than a half million people under mandatory evacuations. some in shelters in lake charles, louisiana, there. military aircraft being flown to safer ground out of barksdale air force base. the outer bands of the storm making their mark already. this is from lake charles tonight. and of course all of this hitting in the middle of a pandemic, as well. thousands of coronavirus cases just in the region expected to get slammed by this storm. so, we ll carefully guide you through it all tonight. chief meteorologist ginger zee is live in port arthur, texas, tonight, with the latest track and guidance for us. ginger, what do you expect? repor