Hurricane Laura roared ashore in southwest Louisiana as a strong Category 4. The two will strike the Louisiana coast within days of each other. Microsoft and partners may be compensated if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. “Pick it up or tie it down…You’re not going to want to be doing that tomorrow in 50 mph wind. A surfer walks down to the beach on Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2020, near Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier hours before Hurricane Laura makes landfall. Evacuees walk to board a bus as they are evacuated by local and state government officials before the arrival of Hurricane Laura on August 25, 2020 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. As of 8:16 a.m. Eastern Time, Laura -- the 13th named tropical storm of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, and the 3rd hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center-- had reached Category 3 strength, with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph, according to CNN. Latest NHC updates: Laura to strengthen into major hurricane Wednesday night. People wait in long lines for gas at Costco as they prepare for Hurricane Marco and Tropical Storm Laura on August 23, 2020 in New Orleans, La. It was moving north at 15 mph. SHREVEPORT, La. Residents are advised to consider the possibility of tornadoes and other storm damage and debris and make preparations. Six people died Thursday in Louisiana as a result of Hurricane Laura, according to the state's Department of Health. Also, commuters are advised to suspend travel, if possible, or to proceed with extreme caution. We could see winds more than 73 mph,” he said. Power outages are possible as the wind may knock trees into power lines, he said. There could be some flooding in the usual spots. Laura had sustained winds of 85 mph and was about 65 miles southeast of Shreveport, the National Hurricane Center said. (KSLA) - Good Thursday morning! SWEPCO will position crews to safely restore power to customers as quickly as possible. Schools, businesses close in northwest Louisiana ahead of Hurricane Laura landfall, Comcast offers free WiFi, service tips for customers impacted by Hurricane Laura, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards extends Phase 2 COVID mask mandate, bar closures, Category 4 Hurricane Laura to hit Texas, Louisiana with 'unsurvivable storm surge', Laura landfall could bring hurricane-force winds in Shreveport-Bossier area. The high winds may cause downed trees and power lines. Shreveport-Bossier City residents will begin to see Hurricane Laura's impact as early as Wednesday. “There’s not much of a line between DeSoto and Caddo. It is beyond shocking that when Laura arrived in Shreveport, she was still a hurricane. Temperatures are expected to drop to the mid-80s. SWEPCO has secured more than 1,000 line and tree personnel to assist company crews in responding to power outages that may be caused by Hurricane Laura across the company’s three-state service territory. Those with medical conditions that depend on electricity should have a backup plan in place. A hurricane warning is imminent with wind gusts of more than 74 mph expected, according to Gary Chatelain, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service-Shreveport. - After Laura slammed into the Gulf Coast as a category 4 hurricane, there is a very real threat that the ArkLaTex could see a major impact later Thursday. Tornadoes are possible in these weather conditions, too. Wednesday: Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards extends Phase 2 COVID mask mandate, bar closures. Haiti was hammered by heavy rain on August 23, 2020 from Tropical Storm Laura, as a second tropical storm, named Marco, was forecast to strengthen into a hurricane and hit the US state of Louisiana on August 24, 2020. The National Guard stationed at Abbeville High in Vermilion Parish prior to Hurricane Laura making landfall Tuesday, August 25, 2020. Hurricane Laura has turned deadly, killing a 14-year-old girl as it unleashed widespread destruction and devastating floodwaters after slamming early Thursday into … "The more widespread average is that 4-to-6-inches range, but certain locations scattered around may make it closer to that 8-to-10 (inches) range," Nuttall said. Tropical Storm Laura hammered Haiti with heavy rain, killing at least five people, and was set to become a hurricane on August 25, 2020 that could hit the same US coastal region on Wednesday. Laura, which made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane on Wednesday night, delivered a heavy storm surge and wind speeds of … Hurricane Laura … The public is advised to follow the storm preparation guidelines provided by local officials. The … Hurricane Laura is rapidly intensifying over the Gulf of Mexico and expected to strike the upper Texas or southwest Louisiana coasts as a major hurricane late Wednesday or early Thursday. Greg Abbott talk about Hurricane Laura at the alternate State Operations Center at the Doubletree Hotel in Austin, TX on Tuesday August 25, 2020. “Restoring power after the hurricane passes could take multiple days,” said Drew Seidel, SWEPCO vice president of Distribution Region Operations. Both storms are expected to make landfall along the Louisiana coast within days of each other. "It's going to be like traveling in any severe rainstorm with extremely heavy rain, probably with very low visibility, very strong winds—it's going to make driving very hazardous," Nuttall said. The fast-paced storm is … It is expected that the storm threat level will be elevated over the course of the day to a hurricane warning. The system produced disorganized convection over a broad area, and steadily consolidated. Hurricane Laura could bring an 18-20 foot storm surge in some areas when she makes landfall about 1 a.m. in southwestern Louisiana near the Texas border, which would be a … "Any landfalling tropical system often spawns tornadoes," Nuttall said. Tropical Storm Laura battered the Dominican Republic and Haiti and is heading for a possible hit on the Louisiana coast as a hurricane, along with Hurricane Marco. Maximum sustained winds have increased to 145 mph. It is not expected to make a great impact on north Louisiana—perhaps a small amount of rain Tuesday night and Wednesday, he said. Flooding rainfall and damaging winds spread inland over central and northern Louisiana, where the storm made landfall eleven hours earlier as a Category 4 storm. Tropical storm Laura intensifies as its center leaves the island of Puerto Rico, and advances to Dominican Republic, entering from the southeast. We can start seeing tropical storm-force wind here in Shreveport as early as Wednesday night.". Chatelain said. On August 16, 2020, a tropical wave along the eastern end of a monsoon trough emerged off the west coast of Africa over the Atlantic Ocean. SHREVEPORT, La. People tie down their vessels along Lake Pontchartrain as they prepare for Hurricane Marco and Tropical Storm Laura on August 23, 2020 in New Orleans, La. “Shreveport and Bossier are going to be really close to hurricane-force winds—that’s 74 mph,” he said. A map of Louisiana provided by the National Hurricane Center shows Hurricane Laura's projected path. “It is overwhelming, to see all the damage to in my neighborhood,” Martin Westin says. (KTAL/KMSS) – 4 pm NHC Update: Hurricane Laura continues to strengthen in the Gulf of Mexico. Workers listen to Gov. A man on Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2020, walks past a boarded up home in Galveston, TX, as people prepare hours before Hurricane Laura is set to make landfall. Hurricane Laura struck Louisiana as one of the most powerful storms in U.S. history, leaving widespread destruction across the state. SHREVEPORT, La. Hurricane Laura, which leaped from a Category 1 to a high-end Category 4, moved toward the southwest Louisiana coastline on Aug. 27. Major Hurricane Laura made landfall as a Category 4 storm with 150 MPH winds. The wind will be traveling from the southeast. Outdoor fixtures, such as furniture and garbage cans, should be prevented from possibly being blown away or damaged, he said. Shreveport-Bossier began to see an influx of evacuees on Tuesday, Aug. 24, occupying more than 12,000 hotel rooms through Sunday, … An employee of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) monitors tropical storm Laura in Santo Domingo, on Aug. 22, 2020. Heavy wind and rain from Tropical Storm Marco brought heavy surf to Panama City Beach and resulted in double red flags. Live webcams: See Louisiana beaches as Hurricane Laura approaches the Gulf of Mexico. SHREVEPORT, La. Hurricane Laura ASSISTANCE. The tropical storm system will continue to cause inclement weather conditions as it travels north through Louisiana and across the United States. South Louisiana and parts of Texas are bracing for some of the worst of the Category 3 hurricane's impact. Rain is expected to move into the region overnight and continue through Thursday. Two of the victims were in … SHREVEPORT, La. Sharing the guidance below related to safe generator usage can save lives. (Aug. 28, 2020) — U-Haul® is offering 30 days of free self-storage and U-Box® container usage to residents impacted by Hurricane Laura. Workers board up shops in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2020, in advance of Hurricane Marco, expected to make landfall on the Southern Louisiana coast. Humidity will rise and the rain will continue after the hurricane moves out of the area. A car drives on a road as Tropical Storm Laura hits Guayama, Puerto Rico on Aug. 22, 2020. A 14-year-old girl in Louisiana is the first known fatality from the storm. "The important thing is to prepare now and to keep monitoring their sources for weather information," he said. Authorities say the storm is now 50 miles southeast of Shreveport. "Even after Laura passes by, we're still expecting quite a bit of trailing rain even behind it, so the rain is going to actually continue through much of Friday, also," Nuttall said. Port Arthur residents boards a bus to evacuate the area before Hurricane Laura strikes the Gulf Coast, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. COVID-19: Drive-through testing sites closed as Hurricane Laura approaches. (WTVD) -- Hurricane Laura made landfall Thursday morning in southwest Louisiana as an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm, forecasters said. In Shreveport’s Highland neighborhood, a few homes have significant damage to cars and roofs. A surfer walks down to the beach on Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2020, near Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier hours before Hurricane Laura makes landfall. On Friday, Hurricane Laura will be “long gone” but new thunderstorms are expected that aren’t directly associated with the circulation of the tropical storm system, Chatelain  said. Laura crashed ashore along the Gulf Coast on Wednesday night, unleashing a destructive storm surge and destructive winds that have left more than a quarter of Louisiana in the dark. We'll see impacts long before then. Firefighters and National Guard soldiers at the Port Arthur Civic Center help residents evacuate before Hurricane Laura hits the Gulf Coast, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. Residents are advised to prepare for high wind … LA-2020-03, September 1, 2020 Louisiana — Victims of Hurricane Laura that began August 22 now have until December 31, 2020, to file various individual and business tax returns and make tax payments, the Internal Revenue Service announced today. NW Louisiana prepares for Hurricane Laura Aug 26, 2020 SHREVEPORT, La. Hurricane Laura's upgrade from a Category 3 to a Category 4 hurricane will bring higher wind speeds to Caddo and Bossier parishes on Thursday. Hurricane Laura, the most powerful hurricane to strike the US this year, moved across Louisiana on a northerly path on Thursday, after threatening an “unsurvivable storm surge” on … On Wednesday, Red River and DeSoto parishes, just south of Caddo, were already issued a hurricane warning, he said. Hurricane Laura. Forecasters say Laura could cause an ‘unsurvivable’ storm surge. More: Category 4 Hurricane Laura to hit Texas, Louisiana with 'unsurvivable storm surge', This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Laura landfall could bring hurricane-force winds in Shreveport-Bossier area, Like us on Facebook to see similar stories, Judge delays jury selection in Derek Chauvin trial, Supreme Court -- over John Roberts' sole dissent -- rules in favor of student in First Amendment case. “The main thing people can do today is take advantage of this great weather we have now and think about what could blow around tomorrow?" SHREVEPORT, La. This RAMMB/NOAA satellite image obtained on August 23, 2020, shows Tropical Storm Laura moving over Haiti and the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean as a second tropical storm, named Marco (upper left) moves into the Gulf Coast at 13:40 UTC on Aug. 23, 2020. “We will make every effort to get the lights back on as soon as possible, and we want our customers to be prepared.”. Hurricane Laura, a major Category 4 storm, hurtled toward the coasts of Louisiana and Texas on … We’re still watching for any intensification.”. That could still happen. Still, four people are dead, over 600,000 people are without power and it just hit 90 degrees. Shreveport-Bossier City residents will begin to see Hurricane Laura's impact as early as Wednesday. The predicted arrival of Hurricane Laura has affected northwest Louisiana ahead of the storm. Laura's winds reached 60 miles out and they are expected to leave behind an "unrecognizable" path of destruction between Cameron Parish and Shreveport, which lies more than 200 miles to the north. In this aerial view from a drone, cowboys round up cattle on a pasture next to the Gulf of Mexico to take them to safe ground before the possible arrival of Hurricane Laura on August 25, 2020 in Cameron, Louisiana. At this time, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) noted the possibility of tropical cyclogenesis over the next five days as environmental conditions gradually became more favorable for development. The humidity percentage will rise as the storm system moves through the area. A bicyclist rides along the levee on the Mississippi River in New Orleans, La., as storms blow in on Tuesday August 25, 2020. "While it's going on, we're going to be clouded over and our temperatures are going to be lower," Nuttall said. However, the tropical system has weakened and is over Alabama and Mississippi. Simike Babineaux (right) and an unidentified man fill sandbags in the Port Arthur pavilion before Hurricane Laura hits the area, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020. Those living in high flood risk areas are advised to make arrangements, such as to protect homes and businesses with sandbags and moving items to higher ground. Seven of the twelve deaths in Louisiana that we know about so far related to Hurricane Laura have been due to carbon monoxide poisoning from generators. Residents should prepare for electricity loss, he said. "Folks who live in flood-prone areas should be prepared for a threat for flooding, especially with the rain we'll get—the soil becomes more wet and saturated.". The good thing is that storm is moving quickly so we shouldn’t get any more than 4 to 8 inches of rain across the path,” he said. In addition to Hurricane Laura, meteorologists have tracked Hurricane Marco, which entered the Gulf of Mexico this week. Show full articles without "Continue Reading" button for {0} hours. We may see hurricane-force winds in southeast Caddo and that’s why we may be upgrading Caddo and Bossier later today to a warning, but we don’t know yet. People cross a flooded street during the passing of Tropical Storm Laura in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2020. The storm … Businesses use sand bags in New Orleans, La., on Tuesday August 24, 2020 in preparation of hurricanes Marco and Laura. On Thursday, Hurricane Laura will reach north Louisiana, producing winds between 58 and 73 mph, he said. SHREVEPORT, La. "We're probably only going to be in the mid-80s on Thursday. "It's going to be worse the further south you get," Nuttall said. The thunderstorms will form in result of the warm, moist air that remains after Hurricane Laura passes over. Weather conditions are changing rapidly as Hurricane Laura makes landfall. People stand in long lines before entering Costo to pick up supplies as they prepare for Hurricane Marco and Tropical Storm Laura on August 23, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Hurricane Laura is the first category 4 hurricane to make landfall in Louisiana since Betsy in 1965, and the first ever in western Louisiana. Best & Worst Refi Mortgage Companies of 2021, Price Alert: These SUVs Are Now Only $19,000 (Deal Of The Day), Expert: “This credit card is so good I signed up personally”, © Courtney Sacco, Corpus Christi Caller-Times, © Andre Broussard/Special to The Advertiser, © LIZABETH MENZIES, RAMMB/NOAA/NESDIS/AFP via Getty Images. SWEPCO is advising its area customers to prepare for the storm now. Residents are advised to prepare for high wind gusts more than 55 mph and heavy rainfalls to the end of the week, according to Chris Nuttall, a meteorologist for The National Weather Service-Shreveport. People walk in Santo Domingo after Tropical Storm Laura caused destruction in the Dominican capital, on Aug. 23, 2020. "Laura will probably make landfall Thursday morning. Hurricane Marco is expected to make landfall near New Orleans while Tropical Storm Laura is expected to make landfall between Lafayette and Lake Charles, Louisiana. “It could be several hours of really strong winds—55 to 73 mph winds sustaining with higher gusts possible.”. Watch Video: Laura expected to develop into powerful hurricane, See Louisiana beaches as Hurricane Laura approaches the Gulf of Mexico, Laura to strengthen into major hurricane Wednesday night, These Louisiana parishes have issued evacuation orders ahead of Hurricane Laura, Drive-through testing sites closed as Hurricane Laura approaches, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. The US National Hurricane Center said Storm Laura was "bringing torrential rainfall and life-threatening flooding" to Haiti, which shares Hispaniola island with the Dominican Republic.It added that Storm Marco in the central Gulf of Mexico was "forecast to become a hurricane later today and be at hurricane strength when it approaches the northern Gulf Coast on Monday.". Dozens of Louisiana families didn't evacuate Hurricane Laura, official says. It's the strongest hurricane to make a Louisiana landfall since 1856. -- Hurricane Laura made landfall Thursday morning in southwest Louisiana as an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 storm, forecasters said. “We could see rain bands from the storm before daybreak and on through lunch before it passes,” he said. Surfers take on the waves in heavy rain on Aug. 24, 2020 at St. Andrews State Park. Heavy winds rock an anchored sailboat as Tropical Storm Laura hits Guayama, Puerto Rico on Aug. 22, 2020. The public is recommended to have a way to receive weather updates without electricity. As of Wednesday, Aug. 26 at 4 p.m., Hurricane Laura has rapidly intensified into a Category 4 as it approaches landfall, expecting to land Wednesday night into early Thursday near the Texas and Louisiana border, according to TheWeatherChannel.com.