MIAMI – Hurricane Ida, which made landfall for the second time in Cuba this Friday, is moving towards the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, where it will rapidly transform into an “extremely dangerous” major category hurricane before hitting the coasts of Louisiana in the southern United States next Sunday.
📡 Cuban radar shows Hurricane # Ida crossing Cuba & showing no signs on weakening. If Ida maintains a good inner core it will intensify quickly as it enters the Gulf.
DON’T UNDERESTIMATE THIS! If you are asked to evacuate, LEAVE or you’re putting your life in danger! # LAwx # MSwx pic.twitter.com/THG0qKUEvi
– NWS New Orleans (@ NWSNewOrleans) August 27, 2021
Ida made landfall this afternoon for the second time in Cuba, in Pinar del Río, after doing it this morning on the Isle of Youth, and is leaving floods and heavy rains on the island .
583 PM EDT August 27 Update: Hurricane # Ida makes landfall in Pinar Del Rio, Cuba. More info: https://t.co/tW4KeFW0gB pic.twitter.com/cxOpkWQz3t
– National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic)
August 28, 2021
Cuba reported at least 2, 461 people evacuated and the service cut of electricity after Ida entered the southwestern Isla de la Juventud this Friday.
Ida is located about 90 miles (145 km) southwest of Havana, in Cuba, presents maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 km / h) and moves northwest at a speed of 15 mph (24 km / h), reported the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) in its bulletin of the 20. 00 local time (. 00 GMT).
The greatest danger will begin over the waters of the Gulf, extremely dangerous ”as it approaches the northern Gulf coast, according to the forecast of the NHC.
Brings the memory of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans
If the forecast is correct, Ida will hit 16 years after Hurricane Katrina landed as a Category 3 cyclone with winds of 125 mph (228 km / h) near New Orleans , a city that are among the places with increased chance of being hit by hurricane force winds from Ida.
🌀 Ida will make landfall in Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane; it will happen on the 15 th anniversary of hurricane Katrina. There is no time for massive evacuations, and the entire local and federal emergency management apparatus is already at the highest alert level. pic.twitter.com/ur3LG0xYLU
– Johnattan F. Bilancieri (@BilancieriNews) August 28, 2021
New Orleans is already under a hurricane alert and an emergency declaration has been issued for the state of Louisiana, due to the danger that Ida hits those shores this Sunday as a major category hurricane, perhaps 3 or 4, which can cause devastating damage.
Several states from Louisiana to Florida are on alert and on standby of fierce destruction, if as predicted, the hurricane gains strength over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico .
Hurricane # Ida is moving into the Gulf of Mexico & is forecast to become a Major Hurricane. The 11 PM EDT Key Messages highlight Hurricane & Storm Surge Warnings for LA coast, where actions to protect life & property should be rushed to completion. https://t.co / 4LIsgbp8uT pic. twitter.com/HZ4V4Vf28 b
– National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) August 28, 2021
Ida will briefly reach Category 4 strength before hitting the southern Louisiana coast Sunday night as a Category 3 storm, meteorologists from the National Hurricane Center said. “Ida is expected to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane as it approaches the northern Gulf Coast on Sunday,” they warned.
The NHC, based in Miami, issued in the last hours alerts for hurricane on the coast of the US Gulf of Mexico from the Intracoastal community (Louisiana) to the border of Mississippi and Alabama, as well as lakes Pontchartrain and Maurepas and the metropolitan area of New Orleans.
The experts warned of the risk of flooding due to storm surge of up to 11 feet (3 meters) in parts of Louisiana and Mississippi, and warns of possible “devastating damage” from wind force in the region, including New Orleans.
In addition, they anticipate, Ida is likely to produce heavy rains between Sunday and Monday on the central Gulf Coast from southeastern Louisiana to Alabama, as well as the Lower Mississippi Valley, with possible floods.
Leaders in Louisiana and elsewhere issued mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders Friday in anticipation of major damage.
President Joe Biden signed an emergency declaration for the state of Louisiana and met with FEMA leadership and governors from Gulf Coast States to discuss the required preparations.
This afternoon, I held a call with the head of FEMA and governors ahead of Hurricane Ida to discuss preparations for what is expected to be a dangerous storm. If you are in the storm’s path, please comply with local evacuation instructions. pic.twitter.com/YzKw9B4utY
– President Biden (@POTUS) August 27, 2021
The Mayor of New Orleans, LaToya Cantrell, today called for the evacuation of all people living outside the system dam that protects the area from flooding.
Cantrell did not specify how many people live there, but urged residents with medical conditions and other special needs to leave their homes early. “The time is now,” said the Mayor of New Orleans.
New Orleans is part of an area where a storm surge could combine with high tide to send 11 feet of water to shore on Sunday, the National Hurricane Center said.
NHC meteorologists predict that Ida will become an “extremely dangerous major category hurricane” once it passes this weekend to waters of the southeastern and central Gulf of Mexico and as it approaches the northern Gulf Coast on Sunday.
As Ida approaches the center of the United States coast that borders the Gulf on Sunday afternoon, total rain accumulations could be 8 to 16 inches with isolated amounts up to 20 inches from southeastern Louisiana to the coast of Mississippi and Alabama to Monday morning.
This could result in “considerable urban flash flooding and river overflow,” they warned.
NHC projections indicate that Ida “will make landfall on the US north coast of the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday,” probably off the coast of the state of Louisiana.
With information on EFE