Hurricane Ida – One of the Most Powerful Storms to Hit the United States

Hurricane Ida - One of the Most Powerful Storms to Hit the United States

Gabriella Gallardo, Reporter

Flooded parking lot in Pennsylvania.

There have been multiple hurricanes in the United States recently and the newest storm hit Louisiana hard. Tropical Storm Ida is the latest storm of the Atlantic Hurricane Season of 2021. It turned into a Category 4 Hurricane Sunday, August 29th just before making landfall in Louisiana. Before noon it landed in Port Fourchon, which is about 60 miles South of New Orleans. It initially knocked out power in New Orleans but now up to 1 million people are without power in Louisiana.

It has caused life threatening floods and tornado threats. Ida topped wind speeds of 150 miles per hour, and this is only the 3rd storm with winds that strong to hit Louisiana. Hurricane Ida has made its way through Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee and up to the Northeastern states. As of Wednesday, September 1st a total of 6 people have been reported dead. In Mississippi 2 of them died when a highway collapsed and another person died when a tree fell on his home in Louisiana.

Dozens of rescue missions to evacuate people stranded in their homes began in Southern Louisiana. With heat that feels like up to 108 degrees and with no power, many cooling stations have been set up in New Orleans. The powerful system weakened to a tropical depression, and was one of the strongest to make landfall in the region.