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The landfall of Hurricane Ida in the United States was one of the most powerful storms in history. The violent winds, downpours, and violent waves swept the coast, submerging most of the coastline of Louisiana under a few feet of water.
According to a local utility company reported on Sunday, all electricity in New Orleans, Louisiana’s most populous city, was cut off due to “catastrophic transmission damage.”
According to the Sheriff’s Office, at least one person died after being injured in a fallen tree in the suburb of Prairieville, New Orleans.
Category 4 storm Ida hit the Category 3 storm Hurricane Katrina 16 years ago on the same day that it hit southern Louisiana and Mississippi.
The storm’s wind speed of 150 miles per hour (230 kilometers per hour) made it the fifth strongest hurricane ever to hit the continental United States. A few hours later, it dropped to a Category 2 storm with a maximum wind speed of 105 mph (165 km/h) When it crawls inland, its eyes are about 40 miles (65 kilometers) west-northwest of New Orleans.
Residents in the most vulnerable coastal areas were ordered to evacuate a few days in advance. But those who survived the storm in their homes in New Orleans, less than 100 miles (160 kilometers) inland to the north, are ready for the most severe test, the devastating flood caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005 The constructed dike system undergoes a major upgrade.
“When the news announced that this was the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, I almost panicked,” Janet Rucker, a lifelong resident of New Orleans and recently retired sales manager, took her pet dog. Deuce lives in a hotel in the city center. “It’s not good for our nerves and psychology.”
On Sunday, August 29, 2021, the outskirts of Hurricane Ida reached St. Louis Bay, Mississippi, and a utility worker photographed the waves crashing against the seawall of the city dock [Steve Helber/ AP]
On Sunday, August 29, 2021, in New Orleans, USA, a young girl covered her face to block the wind and rain brought by Hurricane Ida [Eric Gay/ AP]The storm’s approach also forced the suspension of emergency medical services in New Orleans and other parts of the state. The state has been affected by the fourth wave of COVID-19 infection, which has strained the Louisiana health care system. For an estimated 2,450 COVID-19 patients (many of whom are in intensive care units) hospitalized across the state, evacuation is not an option.
The State Department of Health confirmed to Reuters that the power generator at the Thibodaux District Health System Hospital in Laforche Parish, southwest of New Orleans, forced medical staff to manually assist patients in breathing when they moved the respirator to another floor. .
45-year-old Michael Lewis, the owner of a restaurant near Houma, said he could see shingles on the roof and collapsed fences through the windows of his house. With the storm raging, he could not check the full extent of the damage.
“It’s too dangerous to go out now,” he said in a telephone interview.
Louisiana Governor John Bell Edwards stated that Ida may be the strongest storm to hit the state since 1850.
“There is no doubt that the next few days and weeks will be very difficult,” he said at a briefing on Sunday, adding that some people may have to shelter in place for up to 72 hours.
The governor stated that he expected the newly reinforced dikes in New Orleans to be maintained, saying they were “built for this moment.” After Hurricane Katrina flooded most of the low-lying city, especially the historically black community, dams were built around the southern city. That monster storm claimed the lives of more than 1,800 people.
According to reports, the Ida storm surge (high waves driven by the wind of the hurricane) submerged part of the coast beyond the projected water level of six feet (1.83 meters). Videos posted on social media show that storm surge flooding has turned a section of Highway 90 along the coast of Louisiana and Mississippi into a choppy river.
Some dioceses imposed a curfew on Sunday night.
“We are fully prepared, but we are worried about these dams,” said Kirk Lepine, the chairman of Prakmin Diocese, one of the most vulnerable areas on the Gulf Coast.
The diocese later posted an alert on Facebook, urging residents in one area to seek a higher place after reports that the dam was flooded.
“Everyone who cares about New Orleans is worried,” said Andy Horowitz, professor of history who wrote Hurricane Katrina: History, 1915-2015. Horowitz and his family fled to Alabama from their home near the French Quarter in New Orleans.
The White House said on Sunday that federal agencies have deployed more than 2,000 emergency rescuers – including 13 urban search and rescue teams – as well as food, water supplies and generators to the area. The White House added that local authorities, the Red Cross and other organizations have prepared dozens of shelters that can accommodate at least 16,000 people.
US President Joe Biden approved the emergency declarations of Louisiana and Mississippi before Ida arrived. He said on Sunday that the country is praying for Louisiana and will fully support rescue and recovery efforts after the storm has passed.
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