Hurricane Ida was moving north over southeastern Louisiana late Sunday, finally weakening to a Category 2 storm nearly 10 hours after it made landfall. It had maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. By 1 a.m. local time on Monday, Isa was barely a hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph.
The storm made landfall at 11:55 a.m. CDT as an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm with 145 mph winds at Port Fourchon, Louisiana. The National Hurricane Center warned throughout the day about catastrophic storm surge, extreme winds and flash flooding in southeastern Louisiana.
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In a visit to FEMA headquarters in Washington, D.C., President Biden said his administration has prepared resources, including equipment and response teams, that will be needed after Hurricane Ida passes.
"This is going to be a devastating, devastating hurricane," the president said.
Although the center of the storm on Sunday night remained 45 miles southwest of New Orleans, the city was already feeling the effects, including widespread power outages that later left the entire city in the dark. New Orleans Lakefront Airport reported sustained wind of 58 mph, and a roof had already blown off a building in the French Quarter.
The storm hit Louisiana on the 16th anniversary of when Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. New Orleans officials insisted the city's levees system, which had failed during Katrina and flooded the city, had been fortified since then.
Ida barely retaining hurricane status
Hurricane Ida weakened to a Category 1 hurricane early Monday, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. When winds go below that mark, Ida will be classified as a tropical storm.
The center said Ida was moving north over southeastern Louisiana with "dangerous storm surge, damaging winds, and flash flooding" continuing.
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