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Ida now a tropical storm as greater than 1 million Louisiana utility clients are left with out energy

Ida now a tropical storm as more than 1 million Louisiana utility customers are left without power

Hurricane Ida hit land in Louisiana on Sunday as a Category 4 storm at wind speeds of 250 mph, one of the strongest storms to hit the region since Hurricane Katrina, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

The Karnofsky Shop suffers severe damage after Hurricane Ida hit New Orleans with strong winds in Louisiana on August 30, 2021.

Devika Krishna Kumar | Reuters

Ida has since been downgraded to a tropical storm and is expected to move further inland across southeast Louisiana and southwest Mississippi this morning, the National Hurricane Center said. The maximum sustained winds have decreased to almost 60 mph (95 km / h) with higher gusts.

Late Sunday, President Joe Biden approved a major disaster statement for Louisiana, freeing up federal funds for recovery efforts.

New Orleans Police Detective Alexander Reiter looks at the rubble of a building that collapsed during Hurricane Ida in New Orleans on Monday, August 30, 2021.

Gerald Herbert | AP

The storm is expected to subside over the next day or so, and the NHC said Ida is expected to turn into a tropical depression by tonight. The NHC warned that a life-threatening storm surge is expected in Grand Isle, Louisiana, up to the Alabama-Florida border, including Lake Pontchartrain, Lake Maurepas and metropolitan New Orleans.

The NHC said winds are likely to damage trees and cause power outages as Ida continues inland across southeast Louisiana. Heavy rains are expected in southeast Louisiana, the Mississippi coast and southwest Alabama through Monday and could trigger “significant to life-threatening floods and urban floods.”

According to PowerOutage.us, more than 1 million utility customers in Louisiana were without power as of early Monday. On Sunday evening, New Orleans said the entire city had lost power after “catastrophic transmission damage”.

Ida landed on the anniversary of Katrina, the dangerous Category 3 storm that devastated Louisiana and Mississippi 16 years ago, killing more than 1,800 people and causing $ 125 billion in damage.

Ida’s strength and path will be a major test of flood control from New Orleans to Katrina, including levees, flood walls, and gates built to protect against storms. Katrina had broken levees and caused catastrophic flooding in New Orleans.

Ida has also raised concerns about the city’s hospitals, which are already overwhelmed with Covid-19 patients and have little space for evacuated patients. In Galliano, Louisiana, as the storm raged ashore, the battle for patient care was exacerbated after part of the roof of the Lady of the Sea General Hospital was demolished.

Ida intensified so quickly that officers did not have time to order mandatory evacuations. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell ordered a mandatory evacuation for a small portion of the city outside the levee system, but said there was no time to enact one for the entire city.

Emergency shelters in Louisiana are operating at reduced capacity due to the pandemic, although state officials are working to secure hotel rooms for evacuees.

All Sunday flights were also canceled due to the approaching storm, New Orleans Airport announced on Saturday.

Water seeps into a beach house when Hurricane Ida hits land in Grand Isle, Louisiana, United States on August 29, 2021 in this still image from a social media video. Christie Angelette on REUTERS THIS PICTURE WAS SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT

Christie Angelette | Christie Angelette on REUTERS

President Joe Biden has declared a state of emergency in Louisiana and Mississippi, a move that empowers the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate all disaster relief efforts.

“The storm is a life-threatening storm,” said the president on Sunday at a briefing at FEMA headquarters. “The devastation is likely to be immense. Everyone should listen to instructions from local and state officials.”

Cars drive through flood waters along Route 90 as outer bands of Hurricane Ida arrive in Gulfport, Mississippi on Sunday, August 29, 2021.

Steve Helber | AP

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards called for a presidential statement on Sunday afternoon for a major disaster for Biden after the storm hit the state’s coastline.

“Hurricane Ida is one of the strongest storms to have ever hit Louisiana,” Edwards said in a statement. “Our goal is to help our local authorities and the citizens of the state as quickly as possible.

A resident picks up sandbags home from a city-operated sandbag distribution point on Dryades YMCA along Oretha Castle Haley Blvd., Friday, Aug. 27, 2021 in New Orleans as residents prepare for Hurricane Ida.

Max Becherer | The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans attorney via AP

Harmful winds will spread to southwest Mississippi on Sunday night and early Monday, likely causing widespread tree damage and power outages, as well as heavy rains and expected across the central Gulf Coast, the Hurricane Center said.

As the storm moves inland, the Hurricane Center is forecasting significant flooding in parts of the lower Mississippi, Tennessee Valley, upper Ohio Valley, central Appalachian Mountains and the mid-Atlantic by Wednesday, according to the Hurricane Center.

Ida is the first major storm to hit the Gulf Coast during the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season. The 2020 Atlantic hurricane season was the most active on record, with 30 named storms including 13 hurricanes.

Scientists warn of increasingly dangerous hurricane seasons as climate change fuels more frequent and catastrophic storms. NOAA expects between 15 and 21 named storms, including seven to ten hurricanes, in the 2021 season.

This story evolves. Please check again for updates.

– CNBC’s Melodie Warner and Christine Wang contributed to this report.

Categories
Health

Covid vaccinations greater than double in Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama

Covid vaccinations more than double in Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama

A man will be vaccinated against COVID-19 at a vaccination festival in New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, on May 28, 2021.

Lan Wei | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images

More and more people who were once hesitant in several southern states are now getting their first vaccinations as the Delta-Covid variant is tearing through areas of the United States with low vaccination rates.

Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama have more than doubled the seven-day average of daily first-doses reported since early July, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows, as the outbreak worsened nationwide.

Over the same period, the average daily caseload increased from about 13,000 per day across the country to about 94,000 per day on Aug. 4, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, with the overwhelming majority of new infections below those who are unvaccinated .

“Americans are clearly seeing the effects of not being vaccinated and unprotected, and they are responding by doing their part, rolling up their sleeves and getting vaccinated,” White House Covid Tsar Jeff Zients said Thursday to reporters.

In Arkansas, which has the third worst outbreak in the country, based on new cases per capita every day, vaccinations nearly tripled. On July 1, the state administered a seven-day average of 2,893 first doses in the arms, which, according to a CNBC analysis of CDC data, represented new people receiving their first shots. By August 4, that number had increased to a seven-day average of 8,585 first doses per day.

Mississippi, which saw the fourth worst outbreak in the country, saw its first doses given since early July increased 178% through August 4. Louisiana saw a 128% increase and Alabama, which hosted the fifth worst outbreak nationwide, saw a 109% increase.

Louisiana is experiencing the worst per capita outbreak of new Covid cases in the country, recording hospital admissions after the Delta variant targeted the state’s mostly unvaccinated population.

The state governor has reintroduced a mask mandate until at least September 1 to slow down the transmission. Despite the recent surge in vaccinations, Louisiana still ranks fifth in the country for fully vaccinated residents at 37.2%.

“The COVID-19 vaccination rate in Louisiana is not where we need it and that, when combined with the Delta variant, has resulted in the perfect storm we’re seeing right now,” said Mindy Faciane, Public Information Officer at the Department of Health Louisiana across from CNBC.

Behind Louisiana is Arkansas with 37% of the fully vaccinated population, Wyoming with 36.7%, Mississippi with 34.8% and Alabama with 34.6%, according to CDC data.

Covid cases with serious consequences are also increasing, according to US officials. The seven-day average of daily hospital admissions is up 41% from a week, with the average daily death toll up 39%, said CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky on Thursday.

Studies have shown that the Delta variant is much more transmissible than the original Covid strain and, unlike the original, requires two doses of vaccine so that the body has a chance to fight against infection and severe symptoms.

“Even if someone decided to get the vaccine today, it will be some time before their body and immune system are able to cope with it,” said Gigi Gronvall, immunologist and senior scientist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Safety. said CNBC. “You want to make sure you aren’t exposed before your body has a chance to turn the virus off.”

Still, residents in severely affected states who start vaccinating will help slow the spread of the virus sooner rather than later and could prevent future hospitalizations and deaths.

“People are seeing how this is affecting their communities and they are actively changing their minds to get the vaccine,” Faciane said. “Our vaccination rate is going through the roof right now.”

Patients of different ages hospitalized with Covid in states like Missouri, Florida, Arkansas, and Louisiana regret having refused the vaccination initially and are asking their communities to get vaccinated.

Overall, the US reported an average of about 677,000 daily vaccinations last week (as of August 4), up 11% from a week.

The number of first vaccine doses increases faster than the overall rate. According to the CDC, an average of about 446,000 first doses were given daily for the past seven days, 17% more than the week before.

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Health

Mississippi and Louisiana have a number of the worst vaccine charges and highest Covid hospitalizations in U.S.

Mississippi health officials plead with elderly to avoid mass indoor gatherings as delta Covid variant rips through state

Covid cases are doubling across several states and hospitals are starting to fill up again, especially in states with lower vaccination rates as the highly contagious delta variant rips across the country.

Two of the states hit hardest last week — Mississippi and Louisiana and — have the nation’s worst and fourth-worst vaccination rates and rapidly climbing Covid hospitalizations.

Louisiana Health Officer Dr. Joseph Kanter, said Friday the state was in the middle of “a very dangerous surge.” Gov. John Bel Edwards said the outbreak there was so bad, the White House designated Louisiana as a “state of concern.” He and Kanter urged everyone, including fully vaccinated people, to wear masks indoors and work from home when possible.

“To ensure their own safety people in Louisiana should take precautions immediately. Masking and testing will limit death and suffering until we make it through this,” he said in a press release. New Orleans officials issued a citywide indoor mask advisory earlier in the week.

The surge in average new cases, which have jumped by more than 105% over the past week to a seven-day average of 7,592, has some Louisiana residents rushing to get vaccinated, state officials said. Just 41.2% of the state’s residents have had at least one Covid shot, according to CDC data, but many are rushing to get them as evidence mounts that the delta variant is attacking mostly unvaccinated people, state officials said. More than 58,000 Louisianans received their first vaccine doses last week, a 153% increase from the previous week, according to data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Medical workers with Delta Health Center wait to vaccinate people at a pop-up Covid-19 vaccination clinic in this rural Delta community on April 27, 2021 in Hollandale, Mississippi.

Spencer Platt | Getty Images

Neighboring Mississippi also saw vaccinations jump last week as average daily cases climbed by more than 132% a seven-day average of 910 new cases per day as of Sunday, according to a CNBC analysis of data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The state’s administered at least one shot to just 38.6% of its population — ranking it last in the country.

In Mississippi, the state’s given almost 27,000 first doses administered over the seven days through Sunday, 42% more than the prior week.

“Y’all, we’re going to have a rough few weeks,” State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs, the state’s former top epidemiologist, told reporters at a press conference last week. “Delta is hitting us very strongly. We anticipate that we’re going to continue to put additional pressure on the healthcare system.”

Across the nation, roughly 73% of available hospital beds are currently in use, about 4.5% are taken up by Covid patients, according to CDC data. But they account for a greater share of available ICU beds, comprising about 11.9% of all intensive care patients.

In Louisiana, Covid patients are using 8.4% of all available beds and about 16.8% of ICU beds, according to the CDC. Covid patients in Mississippi are taking up 7.2% of all hospital beds and 23% of ICU beds.

Dobbs said there are currently 13 hospitals across Mississippi that have “zero ICU beds and a significantly higher number than that have less than 10% availability.” He said 93% of the state’s Covid cases and 89% of the deaths in the past month are among unvaccinated individuals.

Vaccination rates there are also climbing. The the state administered almost 27,000 first doses over the seven days through Sunday, a 42% jump from the prior week. Vaccine reluctance is high across the state, officials said, adding that they are trying to convince residents one person at a time to get the shots. State officials pleaded with elderly and vulnerable residents earlier this month to avoid large indoor events.

“We hear it all, from the microchip insertion to the depopulation plan using the vaccine to the magnetizing people. I mean you name it, we’ve heard it,” state health department Chief Medical Officer Dr. Dan Edney told reporters last week.

Hospitals, in the meantime, are keeping a close watch on their ventilator supplies.

“Our number of cases is increasing rapidly,” Dobbs said. “Our ICU utilization is starting to rise to levels not seen since last summer, and we’re also seeing an increase in the utilization of our mechanical ventilators.”

CNBC’s Nate Rattner contributed to this reporting.

Categories
Politics

In Louisiana, Public Well being Employees Fight Vaccine Misinformation

In Louisiana, Public Health Workers Combat Vaccine Misinformation

Mayor Adrian Perkins, a Shreveport native and graduate of West Point and Harvard Law School who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, was sued last year when he tried one. On Friday, he announced a new advisory urging residents to wear masks indoors, a day after the parish commission voted to postpone action on a mandate.

The falsehoods filling social media feeds dwarf whatever vaccine salesmanship power he has, he said. One complicating phenomenon, he said, was the sharing of misinformation between the Black community, which has a long-held skepticism of vaccines, and a white population that sees the vaccine and virus restrictions as government overreach.

Dr. Whyte framed her struggles getting people vaccinated as part of a broader negligence of public health. She said her department was continually underfunded despite significant rates of syphilis and maternal and infant mortality. It is wrestling with infant vaccinations and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, and is fighting an increase in drug overdoses.

Her department has 99 employees, but few for preventing and tracking infectious disease. She oversees one epidemiologist and a community health worker supervisor who has no one to supervise. She is starting to see some help from federal funding appropriated during the pandemic: She plans to hire three community health workers soon, a social worker to replace one who retired years ago, and at least one more epidemiologist, most likely with funds provided by the C.D.C. She manages contact tracing with a small team.

As Dr. Whyte explained the city’s challenges in an interview, Calandre Singh, an epidemiologist in Shreveport for the state health department, interrupted with a warning. The funeral for a police deputy in neighboring Webster Parish was set for the next day and was likely to draw hundreds of people indoors, likely without masks — a possible superspreading event. Dr. Whyte and her team consulted with the organizers, who promised to enforce social distancing and a mask requirement. No outbreak has been tied to the event thus far, she said.

Within a month, Dr. Whyte anticipates even knottier debates about the need for masks and vaccines in schools. Federal regulators have not yet authorized the vaccine for the youngest children, but those 12 to 15 have been eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine since May.

At times over the last year, Dr. Whyte has felt so emotionally wrung out that she has been tempted to quit. Her otherwise healthy husband, a physician, spent two months on a ventilator last year, an experience she describes vividly in her pitches to community members about vaccination. The exchange with Ms. Peavy at the City Council meeting had left her angry and depleted.

Categories
Politics

Louisiana Particular Election Units Up a Democratic Showdown

Louisiana Special Election Sets Up a Democratic Showdown

However, Ms. Peterson’s best applause could also reflect her best chance of prevailing.

“There has never been an African American woman in Washington in the history of Louisiana in the federal delegation,” she said. “When women aren’t at the table, we’re usually on the menu.”

At a moment when black women want to see more of their peers in positions of power – a view that makes up a large part of the democratic base when black women run in high profile elections in places like New York City, Virginia and Ohio this year – this is it Message clearly in response.

“I’m all for women now, we just need a representation,” said Angela Steib, a Donaldsonville resident who attended the meeting.

For his part, Mr. Carter is quick to point out his support from a number of local women leaders, including the Helena Moreno, President of the New Orleans City Council – and to say that he would be more effective in Washington than Ms. Peterson because she acknowledges she is persistent.

“We have a completely different style,” he said.

Philosophically, the two weren’t that far apart in the past. But Ms. Peterson has tried to outstrip Mr. Carter on the left in this race by portraying herself as an insurgent, despite her service as former state chairman and her list of endorsements, which include support from Stacey Abrams and Emily’s List , trumpets, the group that supports women who are for abortion rights.

When asked to describe her political style, she avoided an ideological label and instead called herself “responsive” and “honest”. Mr. Carter said, “I’m center left.”

In a sleepy spring special election, however, the winner can be determined by which of the two top candidates has a stronger organization. Both have long histories in the local office, both have sought this seat in the past and have been financially competitive despite Emily’s ruse given Ms. Peterson third party help that Mr. Carter lacks on the radio waves.

Categories
World News

A congressman-elect from Louisiana died from Covid-19 problems.

A congressman-elect from Louisiana died from Covid-19 complications.

Luke Letlow, a Republican who was elected to the House of Representatives this month to represent Louisiana’s Fifth Congressional District, died Tuesday night of complications from Covid-19, a spokesman said. He was 41 years old.

Mr. Letlow was due to take office on Sunday. His death was confirmed by several politicians, including Louisiana representative Garret Graves, who said in a Facebook post that the death of his friend and “former employee” was “a great loss to Louisiana and America.” Mr Letlow died at the Ochsner LSU Health Hospital in Shreveport, La., Said spokesman Andrew Bautsch.

Mr Letlow said on December 18 that he was isolating at home after testing positive for the coronavirus. He was later hospitalized in Monroe, La., Before being rushed to the Shreveport hospital, Mr Bautsch said on Dec. 23. Mr Letlow was given the antiviral drug remdesivir and steroids to treat his infection, Mr Bautsch said.

On December 21, when he was hospitalized in Monroe, Mr Letlow urged people who had recovered from Covid-19 to donate their plasma. “Your plasma is especially needed by those who suffer,” he wrote in a tweet. “I cannot stress this enough. Please remember to save lives by going out and donating at your local blood bank. ”

Dr. GE Ghali, a doctor at Shreveport Hospital, told The Advocate in Baton Rouge, La that he had no underlying medical conditions that would have increased his chances of dying from Covid-19.

Mr. Letlow was elected to replace Rep. Ralph Abraham, whom Mr. Letlow had appointed as chief of staff, in a runoff earlier this month against another Republican.

Mr. Letlow is survived by his wife Julia and their two children Jeremiah and Jacqueline.

Spokeswoman Nancy Pelosi said in a statement: “Tonight the United States House of Representatives is sadly mourning the death of Congressman-elect Luke Letlow.

“Congressman-elect Letlow was a ninth generation Louisian who fought passionately for his point of view and dedicated his life to public service,” she said.

Kevin McCarthy, the House minority leader, said: “Our hearts break tonight as we process the news of the death of Congressman-elect Luke Letlow.”

Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said Tuesday evening that Covid-19 had “taken Congressman-elect Letlow from us far too early”. Mr. Edwards, a Democrat, said he had ordered flags to be hoisted halfway on the day of Mr. Letlow’s funeral.

Representative Mike Johnson, a Republican representing the state’s fourth congressional district, made a statement on behalf of the state’s six-member Congressional delegation: “We are devastated to hear of Luke Letlow’s death. Luke had such a positive mind and he had an incredibly bright future ahead of him. He looked forward to serving the people of Louisiana in Congress, and we were pleased to welcome him to our delegation where he was ready to make an even greater impact on our state and nation. “

Bobby Jindal, the former Louisiana governor for whom Mr. Letlow had previously worked when Mr. Jindal was a Congressional candidate, agent and governor, said the congressman-elect had “spoken in recent days about his excitement about being able to serve him “Circle.

“I first met Luke when he was a student and spent countless hours with him in his truck driving the back streets of Louisiana,” said Jindal. “His passion for service has been constant throughout his life.”

Ballotopedia says Mr. Letlow is the first federal elected official to die of Covid. The first member of the federal government to die from it was a judge.

Other elected officials to die from Covid include multiple lawmakers: a Republican Senator from Minnesota, New Hampshire’s new Republican House Speaker, and in North Dakota, David Dean Andahl, a Republican named “Dakota Dave” was posthumously elected to the House after he died from the virus.