NEW ORLEANS — More rain Saturday was expected to swamp already soggy ground across Louisiana and other parts of the Gulf Coast where at least two people died and dozens had to be rescued from waist-high water surrounding their homes.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency as rescue workers in the southeastern part of the state braced for more precipitation.

Edwards spokesman Richard Carbo said the governor returned to Louisiana on Friday because of the flooding. Edwards had been in Colorado for a policy meeting of the Democratic Governors Association but left early because of the storm.

Edwards has scheduled a news conference for 10 a.m. Saturday to discuss the flooding situation, which also affected the Louisiana Governor’s Mansion, which has a flooded basement. The governor’s family has been relocated until the situation is resolved.

A spokeswoman for the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office said one man died Friday after slipping into a flooded ditch near the city of Zachary. Casey Rayborn Hicks identified the victim as 68-year-old William Mayfield. His body was found about noon Friday.