Hurricane Ida Downgraded To Tropical Storm

Hurricane Ida has now been downgraded to a tropical storm by the National Hurricane Center as it continues to move over southwestern Mississippi.

Ida initially made landfall near Port Fourchon Sunday (August 29) afternoon as a Category 4 hurricane before being downgraded to a tropical storm early Monday morning (August 30).

The National Hurricane Center confirmed Ida reached wind speeds of 150 MPH, tying Hurricane Katrina on the 16th anniversary of the devastating storm, as well as Laura (2020) and the Last Island Hurricane (1856) as the most powerful storms to ever hit the state.

Tropical Storm Ida has since decreased to wind speeds of 60 MPH as it moved over southwestern Mississippi Monday morning.

The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office confirmed one person was confirmed dead on Sunday (August 29) night in a post shared of the department's Facebook account.

The department said it responded to reports of a citizen possibly being injured from a fallen tree at a residence off of Highway 621 in Prairieville, Louisiana. Deputies at the scene located the individual, who was pronounced deceased.

The National Hurricane Center continues to warn local residents of the dangerous storm despite the downgrade as damaging winds and flash flooding are expected throughout southeastern Louisiana and southern Mississippi.

As of Monday morning, more than 1 million power outages are being reported in Louisiana -- including the entire city of New Orleans -- and 110,000 in Mississippi, according to Poweroutage.us.