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Hurricane Francine live updates: Gulf Coast braces for Category 1 storm's landfall

Francine is forecast to make landfall on Wednesday.

ByKevin Shalvey, David Brennan, and Emily Shapiro
Last Updated: September 11, 2024, 5:30 AM EDT

Hurricane Francine, now a Category 1 storm, is forecast to make landfall Wednesday afternoon or early evening in Louisiana, southwest of New Orleans.

Latest headlines:

Here's how the news is developing.
5:29 AM EDT

New Orleans under Hurricane Watch

Emergency officials in New Orleans, Louisiana, warned residents on Tuesday that they should be prepared to shelter in place as Hurricane Francine approached landfall.

A Tropical Storm Warning and Hurricane Watch were issued for areas along the southern Louisiana coast, including New Orleans. A Flood Watch was also issued in Orleans Parish through Thursday morning, the city said.

Workers from the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-West close floodgates along the Harvey Canal, just outside the New Orleans city limits, in anticipation of Tropical Storm Francine, in Harvey, La., Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024.
Gerald Herbert/AP

Mayor LaToya Cantrell signed an emergency proclamation.

"The storm track has shifted more towards the east, which has the potential to worsen impacts for the city, but the storm remains disorganized," the city said in a statement.

-ABC News' Kevin Shalvey