8/29/2021- 5:10 p.m.
The Mississippi River is flowing in reverse in southeastern Louisiana as Hurricane Ida forces vast volumes of sea water ashore, according to flood-control authorities.
At least one ferry broke loose from its moorings along the river, said Kelli Chandler, regional director of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East. Storm surges from hurricanes and tropical systems in the Gulf of Mexico have been known to push the north-to-south flowing Mississippi in reverse.
Ida made landfall at Port Fourchon earlier this morning with 150mph winds. Currently, Ida is over Chauvin and making a beeline for Houma with 140mph winds. believe it or not, after making landfall, the storms structure on IR satellite(see video below) has drastically improved… which is a bad sign.
NOLA AREA: 100 mph wind gusts have already been reported downtown NOLA. Extensive wind damage to the city is already occurring. In addition to the winds, storm surge is beginning to cause the Mississippi River to “flow backwards” in New Orleans. A 7ft rise in the river has already been noted in Belle Chase. The worst of the weather is moving in. Since the storm has slowed down, prepare for 10-15+ inches of rain. Prepare for no power for over a week. possibly multiple weeks.
WEST OF SOUTSHORE:
Be prepared for upwards of 140+mph wind gusts. Damage will be catastrophic in areas near Houma, Raceland, Thibodaux the eye wall. Get to an interior room and STAY THERE. If you stayed, it is going to be rough couple of hours. Be prepared for no power for WEEKS.
NORTHSHORE:
Be prepared for hurricane force winds later this evening. In addition, there is a real risk for tornadoes going through the evening ad IDA continues to move NW. These storms spin up QUICKLY and sometimes warned late due to their fast forward movement. Be prepared for now power for up to a week. Areas east of I-55 need to be prepared for 10+inches of rain.
BATON ROUGE AREA:
Forecast hasn’t changed much for this area–expect a direct impact from a Category 2 storm (winds up to 100mph possibly). Trees will snap and make roads impassible. Be prepared to have no power for possibly more than a week. The heaviest rain will stay east, but 5-10 inches of rain is likely to be widespread.
If you are in the circled area of the image above, you need to be in your interior room and prepare for some of the worst weather throughout the rest of the day.
LiveStormChasing/Brandon Copic-Houma
https://livestormchasing.com/chasers/brandon.copic
