Francine weakens to tropical storm after slamming into Louisiana coast

Francine’s center moved inland on Thursday after making landfall as a category 2 hurricane and had weakened to a tropical storm leaving a trail of flooding and wind damage in its wake.

Francine will now progressively deteriorate as it tracks across west-central Mississippi into the mid-south on Thursday and Friday. The storm is forecast to spin down and become a tropical depression by late Thursday and a post-tropical cyclone by Thursday night or early Friday.

About 6-8in of rain fell in the New Orleans area, the National Weather Service said. A flash flood emergency warning of potential for catastrophic damage and a threat to life was briefly issued on Wednesday night for the area.

While no more rainfall was expected early on Thursday, “the area is already being impacted by flash flooding”, the weather service said.

Francine slammed into the Louisiana coast on Wednesday evening with 100mph (155km/h) winds in Terrebonne parish, battering a fragile coastal region that hasn’t fully recovered from a series of devastating hurricanes in 2020 and 2021. It then moved at a fast clip toward New Orleans, pounding the city with torrential rains.

There were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries. TV news broadcasts from coastal communities showed waves from nearby lakes, rivers and Gulf waters thrashing sea walls. Water poured into city streets amid blinding downpours. Oak and cypress trees leaned in the high winds, and some utility poles swayed back and forth.
“It’s a little bit worse than what I expected to be honest with you,” said Alvin Cockerham, fire chief of Morgan City, about 30 miles (50km) from where the storm’s center made landfall. “I pulled all my trucks back to the station. It’s too dangerous to be out there in this.”

Power outages in Louisiana topped 390,000 early on Thursday, according to the tracking site poweroutage.us, with an additional 46,000 outages reported in Mississippi.

The Associated Press contributed reporting