It may be difficult to believe that a Category 2 Gulf of Mexico storm that is expected to make landfall within 24 hours may become one of the worst hurricanes in Louisiana’s history. But this is what Governor John Bel Edwards said, using the pre-Civil War time frame to magnify his urgency.
As Hurricane Ida raged in the Gulf on Saturday, Edwards held a briefing to provide the latest news. These include warnings that Ida may be one of the “strongest” hurricanes ever to hit the Louisiana coastline.
“Today, at our unified command team meeting, one thing the National Weather Service told us is that they are very confident about the current orbit and intensity of Hurricane Ida. And you really can’t hear them talking about That level of confidence,” Edwards said.
“So, we can summarize, this will be one of the strongest hurricanes to hit anywhere in Louisiana since at least the 1850s.”
This tells a lot, especially because the Louisiana coast has been vulnerable to hurricanes since the state was founded. This is more like a statement, as Ida is expected to make landfall on Sunday on the 16th anniversary of the historic landfall of Hurricane Katrina near New Orleans in 2005.
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Ada was a Category 2 storm on Saturday afternoon, but the National Hurricane Center stated that the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico may contribute to the storm and may intensify it into a Category 4 storm (winds above 130 miles per hour) before making landfall on Sunday.
The governors of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama each declared a state of emergency. Joe Biden With approval, several parishes in southeastern Louisiana have been forced to execute evacuation orders. The city of New Orleans, which was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, did not order a mandatory evacuation because the city’s mayor said it was “too late” by Friday night.
Flights to and from Louis Armstrong Airport in New Orleans on Sunday have been cancelled. Edwards and local officials warned that time is running out for residents who have not yet evacuated, and either go north or squat down, hoping everything goes well.
“Your time window is closing, it is closing quickly,” Edwards said. “When you go to bed tonight, you need to get to where you plan to get through this storm, and you need to be as prepared as possible.”
Hurricane Katrina made landfall as a Category 3 storm in 2005, with its eye wall located east of Louisiana and sweeping the Mississippi coastline. Hurricane Katrina killed more than 1,800 people, including Louisiana.
Now, the governor of Louisiana says that this may be one of the worst storms in Bayou State’s history.
Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images
