Hurricane Ida, the worst in years, has made landfall and catastrophic damage is expected

“Find the safest environment in your home and stay there until the storm has passed,” tweeted state governor John Bel Edwards, AFP reported.

Rains and strong winds were already being felt since morning in the deserted streets of New Orleans, in a city full of walled windows and houses surrounded by sandbags awaiting this classified hurricane “extremely dangerous”.

The governor said Ida – which added strength to the mainland’s approach through the warm Gulf waters – would be one of the biggest storms to hit Louisiana since the 1850s.

Today, some neighborhoods in the city of Grand Isle, on a barrier island located south of New Orleans, They were already starting to flood due to the rising waters, according to CNN.

Amid urgent warnings of potential catastrophic damage, most residents have followed authorities’ advice to leave the area. And a record number of people flooded New Orleans’ exit roads in the days leading up to Ida’s arrival.

The hurricane was already having its effects in the interior, with more than 120,000 customers without electricity, according to the site poweroutage.us. And the sea level was already more than five feet above its usual level in several places, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

In an oriental district of New Orleans, earlier in the day, some residents were making last-minute adjustments to prepare. “I’m not sure I’m ready,” said Charles Fields, who was still bringing his patio furniture indoors at the time.

Governor Edwards He warned that Ida would be “a major test” for the state’s flood prevention system. And he told CNN that around hundreds of thousands of residents have been evacuated. The storm “brings us several difficult difficulties, with hospitals so full of Covid patients,” he added.

The southern state, with a low vaccination rate, has been among the hardest hit by the pandemic and, with 2,700, according to data on Saturday, hospitalizations are near the highest levels in the pandemic.

This Sunday also marks the sixteenth anniversary of Katrina, the devastating hurricane that inundated 80% of New Orleans, killing 1,800 people. and billions of dollars in damages. “It’s very painful to think of another powerful storm with Hurricane Ida making landfall on this anniversary,” Edwards previously said.

Rains of 10 to 18 inches are expected in southern Louisiana through Monday, and even more in some areas.

The White House He said today that federal agencies have deployed more than 2,000 rescue workers to the area – including 13 urban search and rescue teams – along with food and water supplies, as well as electric generators.

Local authorities, the Red Cross and other organizations have prepared dozens of shelters for at least 16,000 people, the White House added. Plans to deal with the hurricane and activate shelters have been complicated by Covid-19.

President Joe Biden, who declared a state of emergency in Louisiana, yesterday urged everyone in shelters to wear masks and maintain a safe distance.

Ida made landfall Friday night in western Cuba with Category 1, causing property damage and power outages, according to the Granma newspaper.

Scientists have warned of an increase in the number of strong cyclones as the ocean surface warms due to climate change, posing a growing threat to coastal communities around the world.