Hurricane Laura killed at least four people as it came ashore early on the morning of Aug. 27 near Lake Charles, La., as a Category 4 storm, one of the most powerful to ever strike the U.S. As of late in the afternoon, falling trees had killed four people in Louisiana, but no fatalities were reported in Texas, which avoided the brunt of the storm. More than 875,000 people lost power as Laura hit with sustained winds of 150 mph. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said it was the most powerful storm in the state’s history, surpassing Katrina. Damage caused by the storm included a leak from a chemical plant run by Biolab, which was visible at daybreak as a massive plume of smoke. After thrashing Arkansas, Laura is forecast to drench areas of Kentucky and Tennessee before aiming for the Mid-Atlantic.