Hurricane Francine made landfall early Wednesday evening in Louisiana, southwest of New Orleans, as a Category 2 storm. Francine has since weakened to a tropical depression as it brings heavy rain to the South.
Francine -- which brought a record daily rainfall to New Orleans -- is now pushing north, bringing heavy rain, gusty winds and potential tornadoes to the South.
A car is submerged to its wheel well on Neyrey Dr. as water overflows the nearby W. Napoleon Ave drainage canal after a deluge of rain from Hurricane Francine in Metairie, La., in Jefferson Parish, Sept. 11, 2024.
Matthew Hinton/AP
Eight states across the South are under wind and flood alerts, from Louisiana to Missouri.
As Francine moves north, it is expected to slow down and stall. An additional 5 to 10 inches of rain is possible across the South, especially in Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi and Georgia.
8 hour and 35 minutes ago
Over 370,000 without power in Louisiana
More than 370,000 customers are without power in Louisiana in the wake of Hurricane Francine. About 53,000 customers are waking up without power in Mississippi and 15,000 are in the dark in Alabama.
A bent stop sign is seen at Neyrey Dr. and W. Napoleon Ave where water from the W. Napoleon drainage canal overtopped after a deluge of rain from Hurricane Francine in Metairie, La., in Jefferson Parish, Sept. 11, 2024.
Matthew Hinton/AP
10 hours and 14 minutes ago
Francine weakens to tropical depression
Francine weakened to a tropical depression as it moved over south-central Mississippi Thursday morning.
Francine is now spreading heavy rain across Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida Panhandle.
A tornado watch is in effect for Florida and Alabama.
A mangled tree blocks covers part of the street in front of a house in New Orleans' Carrollton neighborhood as Hurricane Francine hit the city with high winds and flooding rain on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024.
Kevin Mcgill/AP
5:13 AM EDT
Heavy rains, 'severe thunderstorms' forecast as Francine weakens
The National Weather Service forecast heavy rains and thunderstorms across the southeast through Thursday as Tropical Storm Francine moves north from Louisiana into southern Mississippi.
The National Hurricane Center said Francine was around 20 miles northwest of New Orleans early Thursday, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph. The tropical storm was moving northeast toward Mississippi at 14 mph.
The W. Napoleon drainage canal overtopped after a deluge of rain from Hurricane Francine in Metairie, La., in Jefferson Parish, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024.
Matthew Hinton/AP
Francine is expected to bring between 4 and 8 inches of storm rainfall to areas across southeastern Louisiana, Mississippi, far southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle through Thursday, the NHC said.
"This rainfall could lead to considerable flash, urban and river flooding," it added.
The NWS warned of "heavy rain and chances for severe thunderstorms" across the affected areas, as well as tornadoes "potentially impacting parts of Alabama and the Florida Panhandle along a slow-moving warm front."
"The greatest threat for considerable flash flooding exists across parts of northern and central Alabama," it added, noting the possibility of up to 10 inches of rain.
The NHC also warned of dangerous storm surges. Water could rise by 4 to 6 feet between the mouth of the Pearl River in Louisiana to Ocean Springs in Mississippi, as well as at Lake Pontchartrain.
Three- to 5-foot surges may occur from Ocean Springs, Mississippi to the state border with Alabama, between Morgan City and the mouth of the Mississippi River in Louisiana and at Lake Maurepas, the NHC said.
