Tropical Storm Nicholas Threatens Louisiana and Texas

U.S.|Louisianans, inactive recovering from Ida, brace for yet much rain.

• Sept. 13, 2021Updated 6:04 a.m. ET

NEW ORLEANS — Even arsenic bluish tarps screen damaged roofs crossed Louisiana and much than 100,000 radical stay without power, a caller tropical tempest successful the Gulf of Mexico is expected to bring much upwind and rain, astir apt slowing the state’s betterment from Hurricane Ida and threatening residents who are already vulnerable.

Louisianans are dreading the accomplishment of Tropical Storm Nicholas, which is expected to deed Texas connected Monday greeting and past propulsion northeast on the Louisiana seashore connected Monday night, conscionable implicit 2 weeks aft Hurricane Ida tore done the state. Forecasters accidental that much than a ft of rainfall could drench immoderate areas.

“The neighbors and each of us, we’re feeling beauteous anxious watching this different slump retired there,” said Valerie Williams, arsenic she nervously watched the cloudy skies connected Sunday day from her location successful Luling, astir 30 minutes westbound of New Orleans. Her hubby and lad installed a tarp connected her extortion aft Hurricane Ida’s winds damaged it. “We don’t request different 1 — we truly don’t,” she said.

Ida near New Orleans without powerfulness for much than 50 hours. Power has been restored successful each but a sliver of the city, but astir 118,000 electrical customers extracurricular New Orleans are inactive successful the dark.

Entergy, the largest electrical institution successful the state, has said the caller tempest has the imaginable to delay however rapidly those residents get powerfulness back. New Orleans and Southeast Louisiana, which was deed hardest by Ida, could person up to 4 inches of rain, portion the southwestern portion of the authorities could spot up to 10 inches.

In Texas, the harm is apt to beryllium worse. Forecasters are informing of the imaginable for large flooding successful cities from Brownsville, Texas, to Lake Charles, La., a metropolis of 85,000 people.

Gov. John Bel Edwards of Louisiana declared a authorities of exigency connected Sunday night. “All Louisianans should wage adjacent attraction to this tropical system,” helium said. Officials successful Calcasieu Parish, which borders Texas and includes Lake Charles, established respective sandbag-filling sites truthful that radical could fortify their homes.

Mr. Edwards warned that the caller tempest would rather apt origin the worst harm successful the southwestern information of the state, wherever galore residents are inactive recovering from Hurricane Laura successful August 2020 and flooding this past May, erstwhile streets appeared similar rivers and cars were astir wholly submerged. But Mr. Edwards said residents successful different confederate parts of the authorities were besides successful danger, including those who had sustained harm from Ida.

In Southwest Louisiana, galore homes are still covered successful bluish tarps aft Hurricane Laura wreaked havoc there. Overall, much than 52,000 authorities residents person requested escaped installation of durable tarps done Blue Roof, a programme funded by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The installations are performed oregon overseen by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The programme is conscionable ramping up, but Col. Zachary L. Miller of the corps’s Ida betterment ngo said helium had hoped to connect each impermanent roofs wrong 60 days.

Now, helium said, Nicholas whitethorn hold workers’ efforts. “We recognize the consciousness of urgency homeowners feel,” helium said. “And we besides recognize much rainfall tin mean much damage.”