Horrifying Wind Gusts of 78 and 76 Reported in New Orleans
04:02 Ferocious Francine lashes Louisiana with destructive winds, flooding rain as storm weakens to tropical storm Francine has been downgraded to a tropical storm, but the effects of the once Category 2 hurricane continue in Louisiana and the Southeast as more than 400,000 utility customers are plunged into darkness while torrential rain led to numerous reports of flooding. NEW ORLEANS – Francine was downgraded to a tropical storm overnight after slamming the Louisiana coast as a Category 2 hurricane on Wednesday. It packed destructive 100-mph winds and a dangerous storm surge that knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of utility customers in the Southeast and dumped several inches of rain that led to a rare Flash Flood Emergency . The eye of then-Hurricane Francine moved onshore at 5 p.m. CT in Terrebonne Parish, pushing hurricane -force wind gusts into the southern region of the state near Baton Rouge . Hurricane Francine landfall on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024.
