The numbers are out. AccuWeather’s preliminary estimate for Francine’s total damage and economic losses stands at $9 billion. This figure includes a mix of flooding damage, power outages and even impacts to oil.
AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jon Porter notes that because of Francine’s path through the Gulf of Mexico, many oil platforms had to cease operations in advance of the storm — a business interruption included in that $9 billion figure.
“[Francine was a] very significant storm in the New Orleans. It was a short duration hurricane hit, but it was very impactful,” Porter said.
Elizabeth Stevens anxiously watched floodwater creep closer to her doorstep in suburban New Orleans early Thursday, as Tropical Storm Francine made its way through Louisiana, dumping up to nine inches of rain in some parts.
Residents hunkered down in their homes across the southern part of the state, which suffered destruction during Katrina in 2005 and Ida in 2021. Many residents still speak of their trauma from that devastation. Homes and infrastructure such as roads and power lines remain vulnerable to storms in many areas.
Ms. Stevens, an elementary schoolteacher, spent Wednesday securing her house, which was rebuilt and raised after it was damaged by Katrina. She moved outdoor furniture and garbage bins inside, and stocked up on ice ahead of Francine’s expected landfall that evening.
dnyuz.com/2024/09/12/francine-floods-new-orleans-areas-scarred-by-past-storms/
Powerful Hurricane Francine muscled its way inland Thursday, its winds ratcheted down to tropical depression status but still a dangerous storm pounding heavy rain across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Florida panhandle.
Over 400,000 homes and businesses were without power earlier Thursday, hours after the center of the storm crashed onto shore in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, as a Category 2 storm driving 100-mph winds. The winds diminished, but the unrelenting downpours turned streets into rivers as Francine lashed New Orleans.
www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/09/12/francine-storm-hurricane-live-updates/75186418007/
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