A man finds a lake in front of his door as Barry unloads the rain and passes the dikes



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"The whole street and the area under the house were under water," Torri told CNN.

During the next hour and a half, the water rose one more foot and the wind continued to intensify. His family, including four children, was stuck in their house, their car almost flooded.

Tropical Storm Barry was briefly a Category 1 hurricane before reaching the ground on Saturday and weakening again to become a tropical storm. Heavy rains are yet to come in the slow storm, threatening areas of Louisiana and Mississippi with a life-threatening wave, flash floods and flooding rivers, according to the National Hurricane Center.

While some families, like Torri's, are trapped at home to face the storm, others have had to evacuate and find refuge elsewhere.

Joyce Webber, 64, lived in a community center in St. Mary's Parish with about 20 other people when she learned that a large tree branch had fallen on her mobile home and that the his windshield had been torn off.

"The trailers do not hold, no matter what type of storm," she told CNN. "They just do not fit."

Others, like Ollie and Hazel Jordan, have struggled to find a place where they and their pets can be safe. Couples, aged 72 and 70 respectively, walked for one and a half kilometers in the rain, from their caravan to a shelter in a college in Baton Rouge, to be told that they could not bring their two cats and their little dog.

Officials are working to evacuate residents with their pets, saying it is important and humane to keep both together in life-threatening conditions.

The region will not be easy to face, but Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said the state would recover.

"The people of Louisiana are resilient," he added. "Although the next few days may be difficult, I am confident we will overcome that."

A couple walks on Lakeshore Drive along the shores of Lake Pontchartrain.

The rain still in front

As Barry moves north-northwest over Louisiana, it is expected to weaken and become a tropical depression in Sunday's day, NHC announced early Sunday morning. Heavy rains and floods are the main threat to the state, the national meteorological service in New Orleans.

"Do not give up if you're in Louisiana," said CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam. He added that the slow pace of the storm worsens the threat of sudden flooding and that the storm is still pulling the Gulf of Mexico's humidity.

Start feeling the effects

National, local and federal authorities have spent days preparing for the storm and the potential impacts.

Nearly 3,000 National Guard soldiers have been deployed throughout Louisiana for eventual storm response, and the state 's Emergency Operations Center remains fully active and equipped to respond. a staff available 24 hours a day, according to the Edwards office.

"This storm has our attention," said Edwards in a statement on Saturday. "Although most of the rains are currently occurring in the Gulf, we know that it will land and affect much of the state.We are asking everyone to remain vigilant and safe. ;to be safe."

Many places in the parish of Plaquemines, southeast of New Orleans, were passed Saturday. The overflow has occurred in less populated areas, but officials are concerned that a possible flood of Highway 23 may trap residents.

At least 153,547 customers in Louisiana were without electricity on Sunday morning.

Alleviate Fears in New Orleans

While the storm has caused – and may continue to cause – problems on the Gulf Coast, New Orleans presents none of the risks announced by the authorities before the storm.

All eyes were on the Mississippi River, with forecasts predicting a 2 to 3-foot storm storm that could have raised the river to 19 feet in New Orleans. The levees protect up to one foot more.

But Friday 's storm surge was lower than expected. And even with heavy rains to come, the NWS is now forecasting just 17.1 feet, and the next ridge should be Monday.

Madeline Holcombe and Dakin Andone of CNN reported and wrote this story in Atlanta, while Natasha Chen reported on Morgan City. CNN's Matthew Gannon, Christina Maxouris, Chuck Johnston, Michelle Krupa and Paul P. Murphy contributed to this report.

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