Final report ties Hurricane Ida with strongest winds to ever hit Louisiana

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - The National Hurricane Center issued its final report on Hurricane Ida on Tues., April 5.

The report confirms Ida struck Louisiana with 150 mph category 4 winds. This ties Ida with Hurricane Laura (2020) and the Last Island Hurricane (1856) as the strongest storms in terms of wind to ever impact Louisiana.

Ida made landfall in Port Fourchon around midday Aug. 29, devastating the town of Grand Isle.

Ida produced peak storm surge of 9-14 feet above normally dry ground on the east bank of the Mississippi River and 6-12 feet on the west bank of the river, including Jefferson, Lafourche, and Plaquemines Parishes, the NHC reports.

Ida would have needed maximum sustained winds of 156 mph or more to be upgraded to a category 5 storm.

Ida is the second-most damaging hurricane to make landfall in Louisiana behind Hurricane Katrina (2005). The remnants of Ida caused a tornado outbreak and catastrophic flooding across the northeastern U.S. Officials estimate Ida caused over $75 billion in damages.

A total of 26 people died in Louisiana, according to the state’s department of health.

A 71-year-old man was mauled to death by an alligator in floodwaters in Slidell. A family of three died in Marrero from carbon monoxide poisoning while using a gas generator.

Nursing home residents were crammed into a warehouse shelter in Tangipahoa Parish where 15 died. Conditions inside were described as a “nightmare,” “horrific,” and “inhumane.”

As of Sept. 9, 2021, a total of 91 deaths had been attributed to Ida, according to the CDC.

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