Updated August 30th, 2021 8:50 AM
A falling tree killed a man in Ascension Parish, while authorities said 200 people are in “imminent danger” after a levee breach in Jefferson Parish.
A man was killed and federal authorities reported “catastrophic” damage in parts of southeast Louisiana on Sunday night after Hurricane Ida crashed into the state as what the governor said was “one of the strongest storms to make landfall here in modern times.”
All of New Orleans was without power, the city’s electric utility said, threatening its sewage system.
The state Health Department said a 60-year-old man died in Ascension Parish after a tree fell on his home. The parish sheriff’s office said deputies who were dispatched at 8:30 p.m. for a report that a person may have been injured in Prairieville, about 15 miles southeast of Baton Rouge, confirmed that a person was dead.
Citing local law enforcement, the National Weather Service office in New Orleans said over 200 people were in “imminent danger” in the town of Jean Lafitte and the unincorporated community of Lafitte, in Jefferson Parish, after a levee failed.
“Move to higher ground now!” the weather service said. “This is an extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation.”
The latest on Hurricane Ida:
Hurricane Ida made landfall Sunday, the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, as a Category 4 storm near Port Fourchon, Louisiana. Gov. John Bel Edwards described it as “one of the strongest storms to make landfall here in modern times.”
Ida weakened to a Category 1 storm with top sustained winds of 95 mph late Sunday. The National Hurricane Center reported “catastrophic damage” and warned of “extremely life-threatening” storm surges. Authorities said a 60-year-old man was found dead after a tree fell on his home. A levee failure was reported in Jefferson Parish, threatening 200 people, authorities said.
All flights were canceled at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport. A little over 1 million homes and businesses were without power across the state; Entergy New Orleans, the city’s main power utility, said all of Orleans Parish was without service. Read more from NBC
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Louisiana is in for a major hurricane
From August 27th 2021
“We should be prepared to take the brunt of the severe weather.” Said Gov. John Bel Edwards
The following written content from Mark Puleo – Please note above gif is not current path of Hurricane Ida
An emergency declaration from Edwards covers the entire state while hurricane watches specifically for New Orleans have been issued, putting the state’s largest city on guard for what could be its second major hurricane in 10 months after the eye of Hurricane Zeta, a category 3 storm, moved directly over the city last October.
In New Orleans, residents knew to hit the stores early, cleaning out the shelves at one store while stocking up on the grocery essentials and topping off gas tanks.
“I hate to say it, but we’re experienced at this,” Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy told AccuWeather’s Adam Del Rosso during Thursday night’s installment of AccuWeather Prime. “We already have pre-positioned utility trucks so that if power lines go down, they can quickly move in. But of course, hospitals and homes have generators if they have people that cannot be moved, the generators can provide the support for ventilators, oxygen machines and et cetera,” the senator said.
However, Cassidy added that the experience many state residents have could also be a double-edged sword.
While it’s helpful to know the drill and feel calmly familiar with the stress of a storm’s arrival, complacency could be deadly.
My biggest concern is always that someone takes it too casually. Somebody that should evacuate chooses not to evacuate because ‘ah, I’ve been through a storm and I’ll be OK.’ That’s a wrong attitude,” he said. “If you’re told to evacuate, you should evacuate. Don’t put the people who will have to come rescue you in harm’s way. Evacuate. Pick up the pieces later.”
Part of that preparation in New Orleans also means distributing sandbags to safeguard against storm surge. City Mayor LaToya Cantrell told WDSU that the city is offering free bags to residents at four distribution sites.
On Friday, Cantrell called for mandatory evacuations for residents located outside the levee protection system, including Lake Catherine, Irish Bayou and Venetian Isles. According to the mayor, residents in these areas must evacuate by Saturday morning. Cantrell also said she, along with public safety and infrastructure personnel, will continue to monitor Ida.
“We do have a major storm heading our way. We are activating every single resource at our disposal so that we are prepared to respond,” Cantrell said. Read more from AW
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