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The NCUA warned credit unions in the path of Hurricane Laura to protect staff and operations as the major storm is expected to make landfall near the Texas and Louisiana border late Wednesday night and into Thursday morning.
Hurricane Laura has been classified as a Category 4 storm, which could have sustained winds from 130 to 156 miles per hour, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Due to the severity of this major hurricane, NCUA Chairman Rodney Hood said, "Credit unions in Hurricane Laura's path should to take measures to protect their staff and secure their operations."
Hood also said, "The NCUA will be closely monitoring the storm's progress, and we stand ready to assist credit unions with maintaining or restoring operations, if necessary. Credit unions and members can find information on staying safe from several online resources, and we encourage everyone to be alert for official announcements and media reports as the hurricane draws near."
According to state officials in Texas and Louisiana, the evacuation zones along the Gulf of Mexico impact more than 500,000 people.
In a statement to CU Times, CUNA Mutual Group in Madison, Wis., said it "has activated its disaster response team in anticipation of Hurricane Laura making landfall later today. We have proactively contacted nearly 270 credit union customers who will likely be impacted by the storm to ensure they know how to report a claim if damage is sustained."
The statement continued, "We have also been in contact with our national vendors to ensure they can assist in providing an immediate response to credit unions who report damage from the storm." CUNA Mutual Group has asked credit unions impacted by the storm to call 844-337-5828 or email at [email protected].
CU Times has scanned the websites of all credit union branch locations in the evacuation zone and all branches are closed "until further notice." Many credit unions just outside of the evacuation zones have also closed branches or have reduced hours of operations.
In a statement from the NCUA, the agency said the "NCUA's Office of Credit Union Resources and Expansion can provide urgent needs grants of up to $7,500 to low-income credit unions that experience sudden costs to restore operations interrupted by the storm."
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
