Ida kills at least 1, leaves more than a million without power. Louisiana governor's office expects 'many more' fatalities as trapped residents desperately post on social media for help.



Tropical storm Ida — which made landfall on Louisiana Sunday as a Category 4 hurricane — continued to batter the Gulf Coast on Monday, after killing at least one person and leaving more than a million others without power.

The Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office confirmed on Monday that a 60-year-old male was killed after a tree uprooted by the storm fell on his house. It was the first reported death related to the devastating storm, but officials fear that more deaths could soon follow.

Christina Stephens, a spokesperson for Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards, predicted Monday that given the level of destruction wrought by Ida, "We're going to have many more confirmed fatalities."

The governor's office added that the damage to the power grid appeared "catastrophic" and warned it could be weeks before power is restored.

According to NBC's "Today," several trapped Louisiana residents have turned to social media for help, desperately posting their locations in hopes that emergency responders can get to them.

Louisiana Residents Trapped By Ida Floods Turn To Social Media For Help www.youtube.com

Ida slammed Louisiana's coast on Sunday as one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the U.S., immediately blowing the roofs off buildings with winds up to 150mph and flooding several towns in its path. According to the Associated Press, the storm even reversed the flow of the Mississippi River.

New Orleans, Louisiana's most populous city, has been completely shut down and remains without electricity. In a Monday morning Twitter update, Democratic New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell informed residents that power is still out and access to 911 remains unavailable.

Morning #Ida updates in #NOLA:🚨911 remains out🔌Power remains out⚠️Downed trees & power lines in roads🦺Emergenc… https://t.co/s0HbnRMIax

— Mayor LaToya Cantrell (@mayorcantrell) 1630324648.0

New Orleans Police Chief Shaun Ferguson on Monday warned criminals against taking advantage of the shutdown to loot and ransack.

"Without power, that creates opportunity for some, and we will not tolerate that," Ferguson said. "We will implement our anti-looting deployment to ensure the safety of our citizens and ensure the safety of our citizens' property."

"Now is not the time to leave your home," the New Orleans Police Department tweeted. "There is no power. Trees, limbs, and lines are down everywhere. It is not safe to leave your home right now. Please remain sheltered in place."

Other small towns nearby, including Houma, experienced raging winds and torrential downpours, as well.

Footage taken from a backyard in Houma, Louisiana, shows raging winds and rain from Hurricane Ida. https://t.co/B8F7MwJRLA

— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) 1630297153.0

"This is not the kind of storm that we normally get," Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said Sunday. "This is going to be much stronger than we usually see and, quite frankly, if you had to draw up the worst possible path for a hurricane in Louisiana, it would be something very, very close to what we're seeing."

I have never heard anything like this! Stay safe from Hurricane Ida everyone #Hurricane #HurricaneIda #ida… https://t.co/HuQU62Uiwc

— EvieAviation (@EvieAviation) 1630270234.0

The Louisiana National Guard activated 4,900 Guard personnel and readied 195 high-water vehicles, 73 rescue boats, and 34 helicopters in preparation for the storm's landfall. Local agencies have reportedly added hundreds more. Those teams are now performing search and rescue operations.

Footage in #GrandIsle, Louisiana from #HurricaneIda.#Ida #idahurricane #Hurricane_Ida #Louisiana https://t.co/7uCFxfsr5y

— M.H. Fahad (@MH_Fahad211) 1630265436.0

While most of the destruction is likely to occur in Louisiana, the National Hurricane Center on Monday reported that Ida, now a tropical storm, was moving northward into Mississippi.

The weather center warned that tornadoes could put residents in danger through Monday night, "mainly across southeast Mississippi, southern Alabama, and the western Florida Panhandle."

Terrifying videos show Hurricane Ida blast Louisiana, tear off hospital roof, intense storm surge floods Gulf Coast



Hurricane Ida slammed into Louisiana on Sunday, pounding the shoreline with devastating wind and dangerous storm surges.

Hurricane Ida made landfall Sunday at 12:55 p.m. near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, which is 16 years after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the state. The Category 4 storm packed powerful winds of 150 mph, which makes Ida one of only three hurricanes that made Louisiana landfall with sustained winds of that magnitude, joining Laura (2020) and the Last Island Hurricane (1856). The National Hurricane Center declared Ida still to be a Category 4 hurricane in its 6 p.m. EST update.

The storm surge, which was projected to be up to 15 feet in some parts of the region, was so intense that it forced the mighty Mississippi River to flow in reverse as massive amounts of seawater was pushed ashore, according to Bloomberg.

EYE OF A MONSTER: @NOAA's #GOESEast 🛰️ gives an up-close look at the lightning swirling around the eye of… https://t.co/SCH7Sn7PMh

— NOAA Satellites (@NOAASatellites) 1630247465.0

"This is not the kind of storm that we normally get," Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said. "This is going to be much stronger than we usually see and, quite frankly, if you had to draw up the worst possible path for a hurricane in Louisiana, it would be something very, very close to what we're seeing."

Edwards requested a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration, "Hurricane Ida is one of the strongest storms to ever hit Louisiana. It is our goal to assist our local agencies and the citizens of the state as quickly as possible, and we have pre-positioned search and rescue teams, boats and other assets to begin helping people as soon as it is safe."

Hurricane Ida made landfall in the United States as an extremely dangerous Category 4 storm that could plunge much… https://t.co/uSmE9Nu6ko

— Reuters (@Reuters) 1630274760.0

Security camera footage from a fire station in Delacroix shows how much water rushed into the coastal areas in only one hour.

Before and after security camera footage from Fire Station #12 in Delacroix within a 1 hour time span.… https://t.co/SThvDscj4y

— St. Bernard Parish (@StBGov) 1630262121.0

Terrifying video shows Hurricane Ida tear off the roof of the Lady of the Sea General Hospital in Galliano, Louisiana.

LAFOURCE PARISH: Part of the roof of Lady of the Sea General Hospital, in Galliano, blew off. 😳@BrennanMatherne tol… https://t.co/ANINQffSNT

— Christina Watkins (@CWatkinsWDSU) 1630269527.0

The monster storm ripped off a roof and tossed it onto the street in New Orleans' French Quarter, where there is a flash flood warning.

1:45pm: Remarkable wind damage already taking place on Decatur Street in the French Quarter. https://t.co/xs8387Ngtx

— Markie Martin (@MarkieMartin) 1630262886.0


Part of a roof flew off in the #frenchquarter taking out a street light. Stay safe during #HurricaneIda @CBSMiami https://t.co/CzNt8YXuKF

— Ted Scouten (@CBS4Ted) 1630263375.0

Furious winds and pelting rain blasted Houma, Louisiana.

A large tree was uprooted and fell on a home in Morgan City.

Large tree uprooted and topped onto home in Morgan City, LA. Woman was asleep when it hit her house. She is fine.… https://t.co/jZD0L2U56D

— Charles Peek (@CharlesPeekWX) 1630267176.0

Nearly 600,000 customers in Louisiana are without power.

Hurricane Ida shut down more than 95% of the oil production in the Gulf of Mexico, according to regulators, which is expected to increase gas prices.

Check out this video from an off-shore oil rig right as Hurricane #Ida gets set to make landfall. Maximum sustained… https://t.co/MCHBUgpMrn

— MyRadar Weather (@MyRadarWX) 1630256318.0

The Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters flew through Ida's eye twice.

Second pass: https://t.co/h7IyGApoXe

— Hurricane Hunters (@53rdWRS) 1630269853.0

Joe Biden refuses to answer question about Afghanistan crisis: 'I'm not supposed to take any questions'



President Joe Biden refused to address the Afghanistan crisis Sunday when asked about the ongoing critical situation following a briefing that addressed Hurricane Ida.

Hurricane Ida made landfall in Louisiana earlier on Sunday, and is expected to cause catastrophic damage to the Gulf Coast as the second most intense hurricane to ever make landfall in the Bayou State.

What happened?

Following a briefing at FEMA headquarters, Biden called on a reporter after stating, "I'm not supposed to take any questions."

The reporter, whom Biden directed to ask a question, began to ask about the Afghanistan crisis, but before she could complete her sentence, Biden cut her off, smacked the lectern, and walked away.

"Mr. President, on Afghanistan—" the reporter said before being cut off.

"I'm not going to answer Afghanistan now," Biden said, interrupting the reporter and throwing his hand up. Biden then turned his back to the press and walked away.

Biden calls on a reporter following remarks about #HurricaneIda and the reporter asks him about his disaster in Afg… https://t.co/wiF0aBEaPn
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) 1630265772.0

Bloomberg senior White House reporter Jennifer Jacobs said she was the reporter who attempted to ask Biden about Afghanistan.

The incident happened one week after Vice President Kamala Harris made headlines for similarly cutting off a reporter who was trying to ask her about the Afghanistan crisis. To her credit, Harris began addressing the crisis several moments later.

Anything else?

Biden has generated fierce criticism over his public posture toward the Afghanistan crisis.

For example, just days after the fall of Kabul, Biden refused to take questions from reporters about the Afghanistan crisis, and at the time, the full-scale evacuation effort that was underway. Following a speech about the COVID-19 pandemic, Biden simply walked away.

Biden was criticized last week for doing essentially the same thing. Then, last Tuesday, Biden was more than four hours late for remarks on Afghanistan.

The White House, however, insisted that Biden has not been intentionally refusing to address the Afghanistan crisis.

"The president never shies away from taking questions," White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield claimed.