Hurricane Ida - live Thousands flee as extremely dangerous category 4 storm makes landfall in Louisiana

Related video: ‘Be prepared’ for ‘very dangerous’ storm, warns Biden

Hurricane Ida is expected to make landfall in the United States on Sunday as an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm that could bring a life-threatening storm surge, potentially catastrophic wind damage and flooding rainfall, officials have warned.

The weather system threatens to plunge much of the Louisiana shoreline under water, having intensified faster than experts had predicted on Saturday. Residents of the Gulf Coast have been evacuating their homes and businesses have been shut down.

Early on Sunday Ida was a Category 4 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, the National Hurricane Center said. At 4 am CDT (9 am GMT) it was located about 75 miles south of the mouth of the Mississippi River, with top sustained winds of 140 mph.

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said on Saturday that the storm could be the state’s worst direct hit by a hurricane since the 1850s.

Show latest update 163027839081mph gusts in New Orleans â€" residents to ‘shelter within shelter’

New Orleans has just recorded a wind gust of 81mph and the National Weather Service is advising residents to shelter within parts of their own homes in case of structural damage.

Alastair Jamieson30 August 2021 00:061630278015New Orleans is now almost completely without power

Nearly all of New Orleans has been blacked out by power outages, data from the utility company Entergy shows.

NOLA journalist Amie Just pointed out the horrifying numbers on Twitter.

“Still traces of green (meaning power) in New Orleans,” she captioned a color-coded graphic, “but the number of Entergy customers without power is increasing by the minute as Hurricane Ida moves into the metro.”

Nathan Place30 August 2021 00:001630277115Hurricane Ida is now moving north

Hurricane Ida is moving north through Louisiana, the National Weather Service has announced.

“Ida appears as though it is starting to try to make the turn northward,” the Service tweeted. “The extreme wind warning has been expanded eastward some into Jefferson Parish as a result. If you got the warning, PLEASE stay in an interior room or small room with no windows.”

Nathan Place29 August 2021 23:451630276215Authorities issue extreme wind warning for several Louisiana cities

The National Weather Service has issued an extreme wind warning for Houma, Metairie, and Kenner, Louisiana, effective until 6:30pm CDT.

“Treat these imminent extreme winds as if a tornado was approaching and move immediately to an interior room or shelter NOW!” the Service tweeted.

Nathan Place29 August 2021 23:301630275315Delacroix, Louisiana is badly flooded

Video footage shows that Delacroix, Louisiana â€" not far from New Orleans â€" has been severely flooded.

“This is Delacroix as Ida comes ashore,” WWLTV reporter Paul Murphy wrote in a tweet including the shocking footage. “Storm surge pushed in over a back levee and flooded the area. St. Bernard Parish is expecting 8-12 feet of tidal surge. Courtesy Delacroix Yacht Club.”

Nathan Place29 August 2021 23:151630274415Video shows winds tearing through New Orleans

Alarming video footage shows brutal winds ripping through the street outside a Hyatt hotel in New Orleans.

Nathan Place29 August 2021 23:001630273515Video shows roof being torn off home as winds pummel Louisiana

Video footage shows the moment powerful winds from Hurricane Ida tore the roof off a house in Chauvin, Louisiana.

Nathan Place29 August 2021 22:451630272615Satellite footage shows frightening path of storm system

A visual representation using satellite footage shows the frightening progress of Hurricane Ida, complete with flashes of lightning around the storm’s eye. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration posted the animation on Twitter.

Nathan Place29 August 2021 22:301630271952National Weather Service issues flash flood warning for New Orleans

The National Weather Service has issued a flash flood warning for New Orleans and its surrounding areas, effective until 10pm tonight.

Nathan Place29 August 2021 22:191630271715Video shows devastation in French Quarter, New Orleans

Shocking video footage shows the damage Hurricane Ida has already done to the French Quarter of New Orleans.

Nathan Place29 August 2021 22:15

Share this post