Hurricane Francine pummels Louisiana, leaving more than 245,000 without power

Hurricane Francine slammed into the Louisiana coast Wednesday evening as a dangerous Category 2 storm that knocked out electricity to more than 245,000 customers and threatened widespread flooding as it sent a potentially deadly storm surge rushing inland along the Gulf Coast.

Packing maximum sustained winds near 155 km/h, the hurricane first made landfall on the coast of Louisiana, about 80 kilometres southwest of New Orleans, at about 4 p.m. CT, battering a fragile coastal region that hasn't fully recovered from a series of devastating hurricanes in 2020 and 2021. 

As the storm travelled inland, Francine's maximum sustained winds dropped to about 120 km/h, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Morgan City Fire Chief Alvin Cockerham said the hurricane's arrival quickly flooded streets, snapped power lines and sent tree limbs crashing down.

"It's a little bit worse than what I expected, to be honest with you," Cockerham said. "I pulled all my trucks back to the station; it's too dangerous to be out there in this."

There were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries.

TV news broadcasts from Louisiana's coastal communities showed waves from nearby lakes, rivers and Gulf waters thrashing sea walls. Water poured into city streets and neighbourhoods amid blinding downpours. Oak and cypress trees leaned in the wind, and some utility poles swayed back and forth.

Hours after the hurricane made landfall, power outages affected more than 245,000 customers across southeastern Louisiana, according to the tracking site poweroutage.us. 

The National Hurricane Center urged residents to stay sheltered overnight as Francine churned inland. Forecasters say the storm's projected path includes New Orleans, about 80 kilometres northeast of where it made landfall. 

The sixth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, Francine was fuelled by exceedingly warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, strengthening to a Category 2 storm with winds exceeding 155 km/h hours before landfall.

The storm was forecast to weaken further while pushing north through Mississippi on Thursday, with widespread rains in the coming days bringing potential flash flooding to cities including Jackson, Miss.; Birmingham, Ala.; Memphis, Tenn.; and Atlanta. It also raised the threat of spin-off tornadoes.

Much of Louisiana and Mississippi could get 10 to 20 centimetres of rain, with the possibility of 30 centimetres in some spots, according to Brad Reinhart, a senior hurricane specialist at the hurricane center.

Luis Morfin, 26, left his RV camper outside Morgan City's levee to hunker down at a friend's home Wednesday night. Winds lashed the windows as they watching a TV powered by a generator. The power was out, but they were prepared to cook steaks and potatoes on a propane stove.

"We knew what we were expecting," Morfin said. "I don't know how good my camper is, but we'll figure that out tomorrow."