16 years ago “Katrina” devastated the region, now the south of the USA fears the effects of the hurricane “Ida”. The storm became weaker in the course of the night, but remained life-threatening.
New Orleans – Flooded streets, covered roofs, hundreds of thousands of people without electricity: Hurricane “Ida” caused severe damage in the southern US state of Louisiana and claimed at least one human life.
For hours it raged with wind speeds of around 200 kilometers per hour, as the National Hurricane Center (NHC) announced on Sunday (local time). The storm brought back bad memories, as it reached Louisiana exactly 16 years to the day after the devastating hurricane “Katrina” hit, which killed around 1,800 people in and around New Orleans.
“I’m speechless. It’s going to be a terrible day, “said New Orleans National Weather Service (NWS) chief Benjamin Schott, the local newspaper” The Daily Advertiser “shortly before the hurricane arrived. In fact, “Ida” hit the coast as an “extremely dangerous level four hurricane” with wind speeds of around 240 kilometers per hour at noon.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami (NHC) warned of heavy rain, a “life-threatening storm surge” and catastrophic gusts of wind. Some media called “Ida” a “monster storm” because the strength of its gusts doubled in an “explosive” way within 24 hours, according to meteorologists.
As the night wore on, the hurricane subsided and the NHC eventually downgraded it to a tropical storm. However, this still brought with it a maximum sustained wind speed of around 95 kilometers per hour. In addition, it moved very slowly over land, which is why the places in its aisle were exposed to strong winds and heavy rains for a long time. Experts therefore feared great damage.
Photos and videos in local media showed houses that were under water in the coastal areas, roads that swelled into rivers, covered houses and numerous uprooted trees and broken electricity pylons. For safety reasons, the important oil production in the region has also been partially shut down.
In the town of Galliano, the storm tore off parts of the roof of a hospital. But nobody was injured. The clinics in the region are currently well utilized with corona patients in view of the spread of the delta variant, it said.
“We have seen floods and storms before. But I’ve never seen so much water, ”reported Tim Kerner, the mayor of Jean Lafitte, to CNN. “Ida” completely devastated his community. Since a vehicle swept away by the water destroyed a bridge, 200 to 300 residents were stuck. “We can’t put boats in the water, that would be life-threatening,” he said.
Louisiana’s Governor John Bel Edwards had warned that the rescue and recovery teams could not start their work until the storm cleared. The true extent of the destruction in the state will only become apparent after sunrise on Monday. Edwards declared a state of emergency because of the hurricane, activated the National Guard with around 5,000 soldiers and mobilized hundreds of salvage experts. In addition, thousands of workers were ready to restore the power supply.
Low-lying areas southwest of the city of New Orleans, for which evacuation orders had previously been issued, were particularly hard hit. The first reports of severe damage also came from the small town of Houma further north with around 30,000 inhabitants, which was directly in the path of the storm. Floods and damage to buildings were seen in New Orleans.
In the Prairieville community, a person was fatally injured by a falling tree, the local sheriff’s office announced on Facebook on Sunday evening. It is said to be a 60-year-old, media reported. The place is southeast of Baton Rouge, the capital of Louisiana. In addition, more than a million customers in the state and in neighboring Mississippi were without electricity, according to data from the website poweroutage.us.
The power also failed in the entire city of New Orleans, as the operations center announced. “The only electricity in the city comes from generators,” they said. Most of New Orleans’ approximately 400,000 residents had to make do with candles, flashlights, or gas lamps – or to endure in the dark. There was no good news from the responsible electricity company Entergy: It is unlikely that the supply will be restored anytime soon. The hurricane damaged all eight lines responsible for supplying electricity to the city. The repair work continued.
President Joe Biden declared Louisiana a disaster as the state requested. This means that federal funds can be released for reconstruction and to support affected citizens and companies, as the White House announced. Billions of dollars have been invested in flood protection in the region since “Katrina”.
Biden had previously visited the headquarters of the US civil protection agency Fema in Washington. “It’s going to be a devastating hurricane, a life-threatening storm,” he warned. “To the people of the Gulf Coast, I want you to know that we are praying for the best outcome and preparing for the worst.” Biden pledged the government to support the people. “As soon as the storm passes, we will use all the might in this country to rescue and rebuild,” said Biden.
Fema flew hundreds of helpers and supplies – including millions of meals, drinking water and generators – into the region. Dozens of ambulances and several medical aircraft were also provided. The Coast Guard stationed numerous helicopters and boats for the upcoming rescue operation. The US military was also preparing for an aid mission. dpa
