By Brian K. Sullivan and Sergio Chapa
Aug 29, 2021, 6:57 PM – Updated on Aug 29, 2021, 7:42 PM
Word Count: 1038
The Category 4 storm roared ashore at 11:55 a.m. local time near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, with top winds of 150 miles (240 kilometers) per hour, the National Hurricane Center said. It comes on the 16th anniversary of Katrina’s landfall, which left the region in ruins and killed more than 1,800 people.

Ida, so sprawling that its tropical-force winds extend 140 miles, will be a bruising test for the region’s levees and infrastructure rebuilt after Katrina. It arrives on the heels of a United Nations scientific report warning that weather will only grow more extreme as global warming intensifies. Six tropical cyclones have now struck the U.S. this year. Floods killed 20 people this month in Tennessee. And drought- and heat-wave-fueled wildfires are raging in California, Minnesota, Greece and Turkey.

Ida hits Louisiana at a particularly vulnerable moment. The state’s hospitals are already overwhelmed with more than 2,600 coronavirus patients. Just 41% of the population is fully vaccinated.

“I feel sick to my stomach watching,” Eric Blake, a forecaster at the National Hurricane Center said on Twitter.

Ida Aims Hurricane Strike At Louisiana On Katrina’s Anniversary
Workers board up shop windows with plywood ahead of Hurricane Ida in the French Quarter neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S., on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021. Hurricane Ida is growing in size and power as it moves north across the Gulf of Mexico toward Louisiana, and New Orleans is bracing for disaster — clearing out hospital wards, shutting down oil refineries and forcing residents of low-lying neighborhoods to flee.
Also See: Tracking Hurricane Ida’s Projected Path

Ida, which came ashore about 60 miles south of New Orleans, is expected to drive up ocean levels as much as 16 feet (4.9 meters). Winds will be strong enough to rip roofs from houses, and snap trees and power poles. Up to 2 feet of rain may fall.

“We’re in for some historic floods,” said Jim Rouiller, lead meteorologist at the Energy Weather Group. “The rainfall — that is going to be the next story.”

Blackouts could last weeks. About 105,000 homes and businesses were without power at 12:10 p.m. local time, according to Poweroutage.us, which tracks utility outages.

Ida Aims Hurricane Strike At Louisiana On Katrina’s Anniversary
Motorists sit in traffic on I-10 West while evacuating ahead of Hurricane Ida in Metairie, Louisiana, U.S., on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021. Hurricane Ida is growing in size and power as it moves north across the Gulf of Mexico toward Louisiana, and New Orleans is bracing for disaster — clearing out hospital wards, shutting down oil refineries and forcing residents of low-lying neighborhoods to flee.
Ida’s 150-mile-per-hour winds tie Louisiana’s hurricane record set by Laura in 2020 and a 19th century storm. Katrina made landfall with 126 mph winds. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it was weaker. At its peak over the Gulf, Katrina’s winds reached about 175 mph, making it a Category 5 system with a monstrous storm surge. And while Ida is big, Katrina was even bigger — with hurricane-force winds that reached out 125 miles from its eye. Ida’s extend 50 miles.

New Orleans asked residents to evacuate or take shelter. The levee gates are closed in many areas and hospital wards were cleared out. Most oil production in the Gulf of Mexico is shut down. Thousands of people have fled the region. The city has suspend all emergency services until the storm passes.

Hurricane Ida May Damage Almost 1 Million Homes on U.S. Gulf

Ralph Tovar, a visitor from Chicago who was stranded in New Orleans because his flight was canceled, tore apart a plastic umbrella bag to fashion a rain-proof hood as he stood inside the oldest cathedral in the U.S., St. Louis Cathedral, as the first gales began to lash the city.

“It’s in God’s hands now,” Tovar said in an interview. “Hopefully, we can get out Tuesday. Stay safe everyone and try to stay inside.”

The storm could damage close to 1 million homes along the coast, according to CoreLogic. It’s forecast to run directly over chemical plants, refineries and the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port. All told, damages and losses could exceed $40 billion, said Chuck Watson, a disaster modeler at Enki Research. That would make it among the costliest ever in the U.S.

Costliest U.S. Hurricanes
Also See: As Ida Bears Down, New Orleans Faces Biggest Post-Katrina Test

In the hours before landfall, sidewalks and normally bustling squares in the heart of the city’s tourist district were deserted. Trash cans tipped over in the wind and rolled in the street.

Even if the levee system holds and keeps the surge at bay, New Orleans could face a major flood risk from the rain alone, said Ryan Truchelut, president of Weather Tiger. FEMA has deployed about 2,500 people to Louisiana and states including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and Texas.