Residents of Louisiana may experience a power outage for weeks after Hurricane Ida struck the state of New Orleans on Sunday, August 29. About 5,000 National Guard members have currently gone for search and rescue operations. More than 25,000 workers have also moved to support power restoration in the affected city. “The systems we depended on to save lives and protect our city did just that and we are grateful, but there is so much more work to be done,” New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said. She instructed the evacuees not to return until power and communication have been restored. US President Joe Biden has put New Orleans under a state of calamity and sent additional funds for the state’s recovery.

Ida hit the state as a category four hurricane, causing significant damage to buildings, trees, and electricity lines. It drew comparisons to Katrina, a 2005 hurricane with the same path as Ida that caused over a thousand casualties. However, Governor John Bel Edwards mentioned that New Orleans’ flood defenses have improved since then. “But the damage is still catastrophic,” Edwards added. “We are still in a life-saving mode.”