Hurricane Isaac drenches New Orleans and threatens flooding – as it happened (original) (raw)
We're going to wrap up our live blog coverage for the day. Our correspondents Rory Carroll and Tom Dart will be filing a dispatch shortly atop our home page. Here's their latest from New Orleans.
We saw some dramatic rescue scenes today, and devastating flooding. Louisiana still faces massive power outages, with as much as one-third of the state – hundreds of thousands of customers – lacking electricity. Search-and-rescue operations continue in Plaquemines parish south of New Orleans, the Madisonville area north of Lake Pontchartrain and elsewhere.
New Orleans is suffering localized flooding, but its new hurricane defenses appeared to have performed on par with high expectations.
As of this writing there has been one confirmed fatality.
Guardian contributor Jim Gabour lives in the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood of New Orleans, just next to the French Quarter. With electricity knocked out, trees downed and the wind still up, he writes, residents are in survivalist mode – and don't expect relief until the weekend.
"No electricity, no running water and 80mph gusts," Gabour wrote at about noon today. "Right now cutting trees off house in high winds and stinging rains. Cell batteries gone soon. Land lines not working."
Just now Gabour adds: "Generator too erratic for computer. No electricity, cable or land lines until weekend. Will have to turn off generator soon, and be in dark again, as we have to ration gas and no stations open.
"And it is suffocatingly hot."
Here's a portion of a dispatch Jim sent us in advance of the storm:
So I just cranked up my generator up and bloodied my knuckles – it is an annual ritual in any case. All is good. The engine fired on my second pull. And I have a full five-gallon can of gas at the ready. So that means I can keep the refrigerator plus a TV, one fan and a couple of lights going when the electricity fails. It will fail.
Plus I’ve stored two tanks of propane gas which will fire my grill, four oil-fed hurricane lamps, a box or two of candles, and lots of other lights that run off batteries. The batteries on this desktop computer will only last an hour at most, though, and my laptop battery is a thing of the past. I figure to keep my cellphone charged off the generator.
At the moment it is quite spooky with everything already so quiet, except for intermittent sirens. People are battening down, already inside watching the storm tracks on TV, hoping for a break. I don’t think we will get one – a break -- this time, and the ‘cane will come a’knocking as predicted.
Flooding on north shore of Pontchartrain
A resident of Guste Island, Louisiana, on the north side of Lake Pontchartrain, shot a video showing water surrounding and threatening to flood her home – swimming pool, jet ski and all. (The video is sideways.)
(h/t: @Laura_Buchtel)
A rescue boat passes a partially submerged stop sign during Hurricane Isaac in Braithwaite, in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana. Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty Images Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty Images
Engineers to punch holes in Plaquemines levees
Gov. Bobby Jindal is on the scene in Plaquemines parish. In a news conference that just ended, Jindal said engineers will let as much water as possible flow out of the area and then they will punch holes in the levee to drain remaining water from the neighborhood.
An estimated 800 homes have sustained significant water damage in the parish, Jindal said. There is as much as 8 feet of floodwater in the area.
For now, the official focus is heavily on Plaquemines. The governor is there with the director of FEMA, Craig Fugate, and others.
A group of friends, from left, James Newkirk, Robert Taylor, Chaise Taylor and Mike Newkirk stand against strong wind and driving rain on the beach in Gulfport as Hurricane Isaac blows. Photograph: James Edward Bates/ZUMA Press/Corbis Photograph: James Edward Bates/ James Edward Bates/ZUMA Press/Corbis
Multiple local news organizations report significant flooding on the north side of Lake Pontchartrain after a levee apparently was breached. It's unclear whether residents are threatened; we'll post updates as we have them.
Flash flood warnings are in place throughout the region, including in Mississippi and Alabama.
Levee atPort Louis / Guste Island has broken near Madisonville. Search and rescue is underway in the subdivision.
#WWLIssac— WWL-TV(@WWLTV) August 29, 2012
Flash flood warning for George, Greene, Perry, and Stone counties in Mississippi, Mobile County, Alabama, until 8:45pm CDT -
@twc_hurricane— Breaking News Storm (@breakingstorm) August 29, 2012
Little Girl Evacuating For Isaac Leaves Instructions For Her Stuffed Animals
Pretty much as cute as it sounds.
Storm photos
A Times-Picayune gallery of Isaac images is here.
The first confirmed death tied to Isaac occurred when a man fell from a tree, the Daily Advertiser reports.
According to Vermilion Parish Sheriff Mike Couvillon, a Vermilion Parish man has lost his life after falling to his death from a tree Tuesday afternoon.
Carlos Medellin-Guillen, 36, of Erath, La. had gone to a residence with two other friends to remove a vehicle from under a tree in preparation of Hurricane Issac when, for unknown reasons, he climbed the tree and fell approximately 18 feet.
Now a tropical storm. Small consolation.
BREAKING: Isaac weakens to a tropical storm as it lashes southeast Louisiana with wind, rain: apne.ws/RnkpXW
— The Associated Press (@AP) August 29, 2012
A floating casket in a cemetery near flooded Braithwaite (Whitely is a reporter with local WFAA):
(h/t: @BuzzFeedAndrew)
President Obama has been briefed on Hurricane Isaac. On a call with officials the president acknowledged the lasting effects of Hurricane Katrina, Reuters reports. This from the White House:
This morning, President Obama received a briefing on impacts of Hurricane Isaac, which is currently affecting Gulf Coast states including Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi, and the ongoing federal response.
[...]
Later in the day, the President convened a call with Alabama Governor Robert Bentley, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant, and New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu. On the call, the President opened by acknowledging the seventh anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the important reminder the anniversary provides of the lasting effects these types of storms can have on communities.
(h/t @ProducerMatthew)
Lawlessness in New Orleans during Isaac has been kept to levels that must compare quite favorably with an average overnight on the town. Local WWL-TV says there have been four looting arrests:
NOPD chief says all cops reported to duty. Seen few incidents. Notes he & Dist Atty have zero tolerance for looting. 4 looting arrests.
— Brendan McCarthy (@bmccarthyWWL) August 29, 2012
New Orleans has declared a rare day-after curfew for Hurricane Isaac, which continues to squat on the city. The curfew will be in effect tonight from dusk to dawn, Mayor Mitch Landrieu has announced.
Hurricane damage in New Orleans: video
Scenes of destruction in downtown New Orleans – and of flooding in Plaquemines.
People sit in a rescue truck atop a levee near floodwaters after being rescued in Plaquemines Parish near New Orleans. Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty Images Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty Images
Bobby Jindal just got done warning people that the storm hasn't moved much and they should stay put. My colleague Tom Dart witnesses why:
A few minutes ago there was a slight lull in the wind and rain and perhaps it lulled people here in central New Orleans into a false sense of security because more cars and pedestrians appeared on the street to join the police vehicles and military Humvees that are patrolling.
Then a dramatic gust of wind, as strong as anything I've seen, struck up; buildings on Canal St shook and I heard breaking glass. People ran for cover again.
Landrieu: Now is not the time for
#NOLA residents to let their guard down. Be very very patient and remain inside & behind doors— WWL Radio (@WWLAMFM) August 29, 2012
Governor Jindal says there are 656,000 households without power in Louisiana, one-third of the state.
Entergy, the power authority, has just under 7,000 workers in-state on the job, and 3,100 workers out of state on standby.
The number of people without power is expected to go up as storm winds continue to blow, he says. Repair crews hope to begin working tonight.
New Orleans officials may use intentional breach to drain water
Jindal says tropical storm force winds could still batter New Orleans for 24 hours. "We'll be dealing with this storm through early Friday morning," he says.
Jindal explains what is happening in Plaquemines, where he says he will be going later today. "Mandatory evacuation was called at noon on Monday," Jindal says. He doesn't mention how many have already been rescued.
Unconfirmed reports show 9-40 people are still in need of rescue on the east side of the river in Plaquemines, Jindal says.
Officials are considering an intentional breach in the levee to release water, as the current has reversed, Jindal says.
It appears that thousands of people on the other side of the river in Plaquemines may be in danger. The water is still rising and is expected to get up to the top of the 8-foot levee, Jindal says.
There are 3,000 people in the area who did not evacuate. Many are being evacuated now, including nursing home residents.
There has been one unconfirmed fatality in a fire, Jindal says.
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal addresses the media Wednesday in a screen grab from CNN Live. Photograph: CNN Photograph: /CNN
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is giving an update on Isaac.
"The storm was almost stationary overnight," he says.
Video is here. We'll tell you what he says.
While flooding poses a lethal threat in Plaquemines, a largely deserted downtown New Orleans has suffered wind damage. Tom Dart is there for the Guardian.
Remarkable that the scene of today's flooding was safe during Katrina.
Laura Buchtel is a weather reporter for local WWL-TV.
Plaquemines Parish Pres Billy Nungesser says areas that did not flood for Katrina, flooded for Isaac
#Braithwaite— Laura Buchtel (@Laura_Buchtel) August 29, 2012
Plaquemines rescue worker: This is worse than Katrina.
— WWL-TV(@WWLTV) August 29, 2012
Billy Nungesser "If that's a Cat 1 storm, I don't want to go through anything stronger"
— Laura Buchtel (@Laura_Buchtel) August 29, 2012
Isaac drops more than a foot of rain on New Orleans
The National Hurricane Center predicted Isaac would drop 9-14 inches of rain, and it already has.
Audubon Park is in western New Orleans on the banks of the Mississippi. The airport is on the other side of town on Lake Pontchartrain.
Audubon Park, Louisiana, reporting 12.67" of rain so far from Isaac; 9.03" at Lakefront Airport in New Orleans -
@ericfishertwc— Breaking News Storm (@breakingstorm) August 29, 2012
Surf washes over the West Side Pier as Hurricane Isaac passes through Gulfport, Mississippi. Photograph: Michael Spooney/Barger/Rueters Photograph: MICHAEL SPOONEYBARGER/REUTERS
Father-son rescue team saves dozens in flooded Plaquemines
A father-son rescue team working with their own boats had rescued "23 people including children" by this morning from flooded homes in Plaquemines Parish, the Times-Picayune reports:
Two of the men responsible for many of the Hurricane Isaac rescue efforts in Plaquemines Parish thus far are Jesse Shaffer, 25 of Braithwaite, his father, Jesse Schaffer Sr., 53. The younger Shaffer says he has a Woodlawn firefighter aboard his boat and that his father also has someone helping him.
[...]
Plaquemine Parish President Billy Nungesser confirmed that the Shaffers are the people rescuing east bank residents. Nungesser says that the rescues have included a woman and her 5-month-old baby from a roof.
"He lives here, he knows the area," Nungesser said, explaining that as darkness still coats the area it would be difficult for other rescue personnel who are not already in the area and who would have to navigate a relatively unknown landscape with only about 10 feet of light ahead of them.
(h/t: Jake Tapper)
What's horrifying at eye level is beautiful from above.
Most of the city of New Orleans is below sea level.
'Bad. Water's over the top of the roof.'
A heartwrenching interview with a woman rescued from the attic of her home in Plaquemines parish. Watch the interview by local ABC reporter Jonathan Betz here.
"First we were going to try to leave and then we didn't. Because we had nowhere to go. Then ... on the TV [ we saw there was a breach in the levee]. We were trying to leave, but trying to drive in the car you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. ... We were in the house. We stay in a trailer."
Q: What's it like down there?
"Bad. Water's over the top of the roof. We had to break through the ceiling and crawl through the attic, and they took us out of the attic and onto the boat. It's very bad down there, very bad."
(h/t: NYT)
Only roof peaks above water in this neighborhood of Braithwaite, south of downtown (and across the river).
We can't confirm the source of the picture, but it has just been re-tweeted by local WWL-TV news, which is on the scene in Braithwaite, and the Twitter user who took it is at least, if not a New Orleans native, a huge Saints fan.
While the flooding threat in New Orleans proper appears to be under control, power outages are widespread – and sustained, forceful winds could hamper line repairs for days.
Here's a map from Entergy, the local power authority, which puts the number of Louisiana customers without power at 548,000-plus.
Red lines represent "power lines off." Triangles represent outages. Visit the Entergy site to see the full map.
(h/t: @breakingstorm)
Power outages in New Orleans, in a screen grab from the Entergy site. Photograph: Entergy Photograph: /Entergy
Research students from the the University of Alabama measure wind speeds as Hurricane Isaac hits New Orleans. Photograph: Eric Gay/AP Photograph: Eric Gay/AP
Maybe gifs are good for something. Buzzfeed has assembled a gallery of animated gifs of scenes of TV weather reporters getting whipped around by Isaac.
My colleague Tom Dart is in downtown New Orleans, where intense storm conditions persist.
Canal Street's width and proximity to the river has turned it into a wind tunnel. It is starting to flood, palm trees swaying precariously and a billboard high on a building has been partially ripped off. Military Humvees and police cars are driving up and down. The wind and rain are at least as intense as eight hours ago.The risk of debris is high.
It was almost impossible to walk the banks of the Mississippi in the French Quarter, so fierce was the sheeting rain and wind that truly was howling. Some buildings have minor damage to brickwork and signage.
The highly touted new defense systems protecting New Orleans from catastrophic flooding appear to be functioning smoothly and the city appears to be basically secure, despite widespread power outages.
The Army Corps says that the New Orleans levee protection system is "working as expected," the AP has just reported.
The city levee board has similar news for a crucial canal on the city's west side:
Levee board reports that all pumps at 17th Street canal are now running, and water levels in the canal are well within safety margins
— John Schwartz -- NYT (@jswatz) August 29, 2012
It's not just in New Orleans. Coastal roadways in Biloxi, Mississippi and other Gulf Coast towns are underwater.
Plaquemines parish president Billy Nungesser has announced that 25 people have been rescued in the area of Braithwaite, about 20 miles from downtown New Orleans, Laura Buchtel of local WWL-TV reports.
Correction: 25 people rescued in Braithwaite, not 75. Hard to hear Nungesser, we were trying to interpret what he was saying
— Laura Buchtel (@Laura_Buchtel) August 29, 2012
Plaquemines parish hugs the Mississippi south of New Orleans. Even when it's not flooded, it's mostly water.
Plaquemines is basically a series of marshes, canals and levees. Oil industry ship channels whittled down the natural marsh defenses.
— Lizzie O'Leary (@lizzieohreally) August 29, 2012
An uprooted tree lies across Poydras Street in downtown New Orleans after Hurricane Isaac made landfall in Louisiana. Photograph: Gerald Herbert/AP Photograph: Gerald Herbert/AP
Check out this animated map depicting wind activity across the United States. Whatever's happening over New Orleans looks dangerous. Worth a clickthru.
(h/t: @katierogers)
Screen grab of a detail of the wind map art project. Photograph: hint.fm/wind Photograph: /hint.fm/wind/
Residents with boats are helping rescue workers save people in Plaquemines parish from rising floodwaters, the Times-Picayune reports:
Dozens of people on Plaquemines' east bank, south of St. Bernard Parish, reportedly are stranded, some in attics to escape flood waters that may have reached 5 to 9 feet in certain areas.
Local ABC reporter Jonathan Betz is south of New Orleans in Plaquemines parish, where people are being rescued from flooded homes and dropped off at a high levee.
Big water:
Good morning – we're focused on the fallout from hurricane Isaac, which seems reluctant to leave New Orleans behind, moving at a snaillike 6mph as it continues to dump water on the soaked city. Here's a summary of the latest developments:
Isaac pushed water over the top of levees in Plaquemines parish south of New Orleans, trapping some residents.
In a replay of desperate scenes from hurricane Katrina seven years ago, rescuers plucked families from the upper levels of partially submerged homes.
Rescuers are working to locate and save residents of Plaquemines, a low-lying area at the mouth of the Mississippi that had been subject to mandatory evacuation.
Coastal Mississippi is the scene of extensive flooding, and a storm surge corresponding to high tide at 11am ET could cause significant new flooding.
Isaac is still a category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75mph.