On Aug. 29, Hurricane Ida made landfall near Port Fourchon, La. With winds of 150 mph, just shy of a Category 5 storm, Hurricane Ida is the second most powerful hurricane to ever hit Louisiana. Ida caused horrific winds and tons of flooding across Louisiana and the rest of the country. 

The hurricane caused more than 60 deaths and injured many. As it passed through Louisiana, it stretched to Cape Cod, Mass. Many tornadoes formed, which also caused several injuries. More than a thousand homes were destroyed, and gas stations were without fuel for nine days. Several nursing homes also had to be evacuated when the storm hit. Some communities finally got power back, but others still didn’t have power well after the storm passed. 

“Ida affected my whole second week of college and the first semester,” 2021 alumni Madison Lewis said. 

According to Lewis, her college, Louisiana State University, closed their whole campus because of the hurricane, which pushed back her due dates and exams. Lewis did evacuate, but some of her friends did not. While the college residence buildings were built to be able to last during strong hurricanes and storms, she felt safer to leave rather than to stay. 

After nine hours of harsh rain and winds, Ida finally lowered to a Category 3 storm. It caused over 10 feet of storm surge when it made landfall and waves were measured up to 38 feet. Just west of New Orleans got hit with 17 inches of rain. Philadelphia, Pa, New York City and Maryland also got slammed with more than 10 inches of rain. New York City received about three inches of rain an hour which set a record as their wettest day ever. This also includes south-central Pennsylvania and areas throughout New England. 

“Not much damage was done on campus, there was some flooding and roofs were damaged. Baton Rouge was hit as bad. Most damage was closer to the people on shore,” Lewis said. 

Many say New Orleans now looks like a wasteland. Getting hit so hard caused it to flood, and many trees to fall down. More than 1 million people lost power in Louisiana alone. Ida hit Cuba first on Aug. 27. It started as a Category 2, but it quickly turned into a Category 4 when it made landfall. 

Many have said there are more questions to the hurricane than answers. People have said they are going to try their best to clean up and make everyone safe, as the hurricane did a lot of damage. 

Officials in Louisiana are saying to stay evacuated, as it’s not safe to return. Ida damaged a lot of things including roads, sewage and water services. Ida turned into a tropical storm when it hit Tennessee, but even then it still caused five more deaths. 

After the hurricane, the humidity jumped and produced temperatures feeling like 100 degrees in Louisiana and Mississippi. Hurricane Ida is tied with Hurricane Katrina as  the two most devastating hurricanes to ever hit Louisiana.