(TANGIPAHOA PARISH, La.) — Louisiana officials are investigating a facility where nursing home residents were evacuated to after four residents died there ahead of Hurricane Ida.

The coroner determined three of the deaths to be storm-related, though the residents’ definitive causes of death have not been confirmed.

On Friday, Aug. 27, two days before Ida made landfall, the Louisiana Dept. of Health (LDH) learned of the four deaths at an unnamed facility in the Tangipahoa Parish.

After the hurricane hit, LDH was alerted to “deteriorating conditions” at this facility and officials “promptly visited” the site Tuesday — but were “expelled from the property and prevented from conducting a full assessment.”

Nola.com reports the facility was a warehouse “with overflowing toilets and piled up trash.” Officials and workers at the facility told Nola.com residents were trapped in “inhumane conditions.”

“We have significant concerns about conditions in this facility,” LDH said in a statement.

Unless under a mandatory evacuation order, nursing homes make the decision of when and where to evacuate, LDH said. These facilities are required to provide safe conditions for their residents.

LDH is removing 834 residents from seven nursing homes across four parishes. The most vulnerable residents are being moved first, the department said. As of Friday morning, LDH said it had moved 721 residents.

Twelve of the residents rescued required hospitalization, the department said.

“This is a serious and active investigation. We will be taking action against these nursing facilities, and will be making appropriate referrals to law enforcement,” LDH said in a statement.

Residents from the following nursing homes were evacuated to the facility under investigation: River Palms Nursing and Rehab, Orleans Parish; Maison Orleans Healthcare Center, Orleans Parish; Park Place Healthcare Nursing Home, Jefferson Parish; West Jefferson Health Care Center, Jefferson Parish; Maison DeVille Nursing Home of Harvey, Jefferson Parish; Maison DeVille Nursing Home, Terrebonne Parish; South Lafourche Nursing and Rehab, Lafourche Parish.

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(ATLANTA) — The parents of Ahmaud Arbery welcomed the indictment of a former district attorney for allegedly interfering with the arrest of one of the men involved in the shooting death of their son as well as showing favor to another.

Arbery, a 25-year-old Black man, was fatally shot while jogging on Feb. 23, 2020.

“Yesterday was a very huge win. I’m speechless,” Arbery’s mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, said during a press conference on Friday.

She thanked Attorney General Chris Carr for staying in contact with the family and assuring them that justice would be served.

Arbery’s father, Marcus Arbery, said that he is “grateful” for the indictment and that “everybody that had a hand on [Ahmaud’s] death needs to be brought to justice.”

According to the two-count indictment obtained by ABC News, former district attorney Jackie Lee Johnson was charged with violating her oath of office for allegedly “showing favor and affection to Greg McMichael during the investigation into the shooting death of Ahmaud Arbery.”

McMichael is a retired investigator with the Brunswick District Attorney’s Office who previously served as a Glynn County police officer.

She is also charged with obstructing a law enforcement officer by allegedly “directing that Travis McMichael should not be placed under arrest,” the indictment said.

An attorney representing Johnson told ABC News on Friday they will not be commenting on the matter amid ongoing litigation.

“The path to justice for Ahmaud Aubrey and his family has been a long and arduous one, but the indictment is yet another step in the right direction,” Aubrey family attorney Benjamin Crump said during the press conference. “Former DA Johnson may not have pulled the trigger on the day Ahmaud was murdered, but she played a starring role in the cover up.”

Three white men in Georgia — Greg and Travis McMichael, a father and son, and their neighbor, William “Roddie” Bryan Jr. — were charged with murder for allegedly tracking down and fatally shooting Arbery.

All three pleaded not guilty and jury selection for the state trial is set to begin on Oct. 18.

According to a police report, McMichael claimed that he assumed Arbery was a person who committed “several break-ins” in their neighborhood when he and his son chased him down in a pickup truck.

Meanwhile, prosecutors allege Bryan struck Arbery with his vehicle while assisting the McMichaels in chasing him. Bryan also recorded cellphone video that captured Travis McMichael allegedly shooting Arbery with a shotgun during a struggle.

“The way he died, it just really devastated my family,” Marcus Arbery said. “I’m still struggling with it every day as a father because it’s my job to protect my children, and God knows I do that … I’m still hurt because all I got is pictures to look at him.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a law in May repealing the state citizen’s arrest statute, therefore banning private citizens from arresting people they suspect committed a crime.

Arbery’s case did not gain national attention until a video of the shooting was leaked on social media, where it went viral.

An arrest was not made until more than two months after Arbery’s death. Amid national outcry, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case and arrested the McMichaels and Bryan.

Federal prosecutors filed hate crime and attempted kidnapping charges against the three men in April. They were arraigned in federal court in Brunswick, Georgia, in May and all three pleaded not guilty.

During the hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge Benjamin Cheesbro read the federal complaint against the men, which alleges they “did willfully, by force and threat of force, injure, intimidate and interfere with Ahmaud Arbery, an African American man, because of his race and color.”

A trial is set for February 2022.

ABC News’ Bill Hutchinson and Abby Cruz contributed to this report.

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(NEW YORK) — A Tennessee-based woman is easing back to school stress and boosting confidence by generously offering her hair braiding services for free.

Brittany Starks posted on Facebook: “Anyone know single parents who can’t afford to get their child’s hair done for school? I will braid it for free!”

Since posting, her inital ask has taken off like wildfire.

The single mother of two said she’s been homeless twice and in an unfortunate predicament where all of her children’s clothing was in storage and she faced the issue of trying to figure out how to make ends meet to get them what they needed before heading back to school.

Then, a family friend gave her children bookbags and clothes. “It was perfect,” she told “Good Morning America.” “So after that, I was thinking how can I give back?”

Once Starks realized how she could help other single mothers who may have been in similar situations to her own through offering free hair braiding, she thought only about seven people would reach out.

However, she’s now braided over 35 children’s hair.

Starks opened up about hearing some of the stories of the mothers of the children brought to her and mentioned how some had recently gone through a divorce and others were going through depression.

“I remember when I was depressed I wanted to die, and I know these moms probably don’t feel like doing anything as they are going through it trying to figure out ways to make themselves happy,” Starks said.

She continued: “There were also two little girls who didn’t go to school the first few days because they weren’t able to get their hair done.”

Starks also explained how some of the young girls would come in with a really quiet demeanor along with their heads down, but leave smiling and showing so much more of their personality after getting their hair styled.

Since offering her services at the beginning of August, Starks shared an updated social media post asking for help from other local braiders, due to the large number of children that have been reaching out to her.

She was able to book space at a church and other braiders such as Donna Garcia also offered their services. Together, they created a hair braiding event that Starks now looks forward to hosting monthly.

“The biggest response came after it went viral. I had other parents in other states reaching out to ask if I could braid their children’s hair,” said Starks.

While Starks said most of the hairstyles can be time-consuming, ranging from four to six hours and priced between $120 – $250 and up, seeing each parent and child smile makes every moment worth it.

“I didn’t expect all of this at all. I’ve been surprised and overwhelmed at the same time,” said Starks. “I just feel like it was such a big blessing and I feel like I’ve found my purpose in life.”

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