Construction on Meta’s Largest Data Center Brings 600% Crash Spike, Chaos to Rural Louisiana

Construction on Meta’s largest data center brings 600% crash spike, chaos to rural Louisiana

KEY TAKEAWAYS: Truck traffic linked to Meta’s data center has surged crashes by more than 600% around Holly Ridge. Students and residents report constant noise, dangerous driving, and unlicensed truck operators. Local officials acknowledge problems but residents say little has changed despite new traffic controls. Community members also report water discoloration and repeated power outages since construction began. Penelope Hull doesn’t ca…

Construction on Meta’s largest data center brings 600% crash spike, chaos to rural Louisiana

A dump truck drives past Holly Ridge Elementary School in Holly Ridge, Louisiana, on Friday, October 17, 2025. The school is less than a mile away from the construction site of Meta’s new data center, Hyperion. Officials shut down the playground in front of the school because of safety concerns related to the truck traffic. (Dylan Hawkins/Gulf States Newsroom)Penelope Hull doesn’t care that the road in front of her elementary school leads to wha…

Construction on Meta’s largest data center brings 600% crash spike, chaos to rural Louisiana

Penelope Hull doesn’t care that the road in front of her elementary school leads to what will be the largest data center in the world. She just misses the playground in front of Holly Ridge Elementary School. It’s shut down…

Meta Project spikes car crashes

Penelope Hull doesn’t care that the road in front of her elementary school leads to what will be the largest data center in the world. She just misses the playground in front of Holly Ridge Elementary School.  It’s shut down this year because it faces the roads where, every day, thousands of dump trucks and 18-wheelers thunder toward “Hyperion,” Meta’s $27 billion data center being built less than a mile away.  Holly Ridge is a town of fewer tha…

Crashes have risen 600% near Meta’s Hyperion data center

Crashes in Holly Ridge have spiked more than 600% this year as heavy truck traffic tied to Meta’s $27 billion Hyperion data center floods the rural community’s two-lane highways, The Gulf States Newsroom writes.  Police records show 64 crashes between January and mid-September, up from just nine last year, including fatal wrecks and collisions involving unlicensed dump-truck and 18-wheeler drivers en route to the construction site. Traffic count…