ORLANDO, Fla. – The rapid intensification of Hurricane Ida continued overnight. Hurricane Ida’s maximum sustained winds were 150 mph with wind gusts of 185 mph at landfall.
The Category 4 storm made landfall just before 1 p.m. near Port Fourchon, Louisiana.
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“Some additional strengthening is forecast, and Ida is expected to be an extremely dangerous major hurricane when it makes landfall along the Louisiana coast,” the hurricane center said.
As of 4 p.m. Sunday, Ida’s maximum winds were 140 mph and the storm was moving northwest at 11 mph.
After landfall, the hurricane is then forecast to move inland over portions of Louisiana and western Mississippi on Monday and Monday night, according to the National Hurricane Center.
According to The National Weather Service in New Orleans, there is the possibility that conditions could be unlivable along the coast for some time and areas around New Orleans and Baton Rouge could be without power for weeks.
The two strongest hurricanes to make landfall in Louisiana both had wind speeds of 150 mph, the last Island Hurricane of 1856 and Laura of 2020.