Almost 800 rescued in St. John the Baptist Parish after Hurricane Ida

At least three people have died as a result of the storm.

ByJulia Jacobo, Emily Shapiro, Ivan Pereira, Morgan Winsor, and Bill Hutchinson
Last Updated: August 31, 2021, 8:36 AM EDT

Ida is barreling through Louisiana after making landfall in the state as a powerful Category 4 hurricane on Sunday afternoon.

It was one of the strongest hurricanes on record -- by both wind speed and pressure -- to roar ashore in Louisiana.

Ida, now a tropical storm, is hitting on the 16-year anniversary of Katrina, a Category 3 hurricane that ravaged the Gulf Coast. Hurricane Katrina unleashed a series of events, taking the lives of more than 1,800 people and leaving more than $100 billion worth of damage in its wake.

Latest headlines:

Here are the latest developments. All times Eastern.
Aug 29, 2021, 12:11 PM EDT

Eyewall beginning to hit land

Hurricane conditions are beginning to strengthen as Ida’s eyewall edges closer to Louisiana’s shore.

The system is still a Category 4 storm with 150 mph winds. As of 12 p.m., it was 25 miles south-southwest of Grand Isle, Louisiana, and about 60 miles southeast of Houma, Louisiana.
Ida is moving northwest at 13 mph.

A man pulls a cart down a mostly deserted Bourbon Street in the French Quarter as the early effects of Hurricane Ida are felt, Aug. 29, 2021, in New Orleans.
Eric Gay/AP

Shell Beach, Louisiana, is reporting 6 feet of storm surge, while parts of southern Mississippi are reporting storm surge of 5.4 feet.

Wind gusts well over 100 mph are being reported in south Louisiana, with gusts up to 60 mph at New Orleans Lakefront Airport.

-ABC News’ Dan Manzo

Aug 29, 2021, 11:16 AM EDT

Catastrophic storm surge coming ashore

Hurricane force winds and catastrophic storm surge are moving onto the southern Louisiana coast.

Ida is a major Category 4 hurricane with winds of 150 mph, but it has the possibility to strengthen even more in the next hour as it churns along the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

Hurricane Ida satellite map.
ABC News

At 11 a.m., the storm was about 85 miles south of New Orleans, moving northwest at 13 mph.

Wind gusts of 121 mph have already been reported in southern Louisiana, while storm surge of 5.6 feet was recorded in Shell Beach, Louisiana.

Ida is expected to make landfall in the next few hours.

-ABC News’ Dan Manzo

Aug 29, 2021, 10:06 AM EDT

Northern eyewall of storm approaching Louisiana

Wind gusts of 121 mph have been reported as the eye of Hurricane Ida edges toward land.

Ida is now 40 miles south-southwest of Grand Isle, Louisiana, moving northwest at 14 mph.

An extreme wind warning remains in effect for parts of Louisiana, where winds up to 150 mph are expected.

-ABC News’ Dan Manzo

Aug 29, 2021, 9:26 AM EDT

Residents still in southern Louisiana advised to 'take cover now'

Winds up to 150 mph are now moving onto Louisiana’s coast.

Hurricane Ida is now 50 miles south-southeast of Grand Isle, Louisiana, moving northwest at 15 mph.  

An extreme wind warning has been issued for parts of southern Louisiana, including Houma, Louisiana, about 60 miles southwest of New Orleans.  

Hurricane Ida tornado watch.
ABC News

Winds are currently gusting to 120 mph on the edge of the state, and rainfall rates of 3 inches per hour or more are now moving into Louisiana.

Widespread destructive winds of 115 mph to 150 mph with "swaths of tornado-like damage" will be spread across St. Bernard Parish, St. Charles Parish, Terrebonne Parish, Lafourche Parish, Jefferson Parish and Plaquemines Parish, according to the National Weather Service.

Residents who did not evacuate are advised to take cover in a reinforced interior room away from windows or under a table or other sturdy piece of furniture with blankets and mattresses covering their face and body.

-ABC News’ Dan Manzo

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