The 10AM advisory from the National Hurricane center shows Barry has seen an increase in the maximum sustained winds to 65 miles per hour. Morgan City looks to be at the center of most tracks for the likely Saturday morning landfall. Three to six feet of storm surge is expected along the coast along with category one hurricane force winds and heavy rains, but Morgan City Mayor Frank “Boo” Grizzaffi says they’ve drained their drainage canals down to the mud, and all of the city’s pumps have recently been redone, but there may still be street flooding.
Numerous road closures, especially south of Interstate 10, are expected. State Department of Transportation spokesperson Rodney Mallett says check 5-1-1-L-A-dot-org for the latest.
Cut 9 (08) “…across the state”
Rainfall is the biggest concern from Barry at his point. National Weather Service Slidell meteorologist Phil Grigsby says the lion’s share of that rain starts today and could possibly continue through Sunday with rainfall totals of 18-24 inches in some places. Grigsby says there are many aspects of this flooding threat that shares parallels with 2016 flooding.
Cut 14 (09) “…east around Hammond.”
The threat of a major rainfall event similar to the 2016 floods has many grabbing sandbags for their homes and businesses. Sandbags are being dispersed in flood-prone areas of the state. Nicole from Baton Rouge says she was flooded in 2016, and is grateful for the opportunity to utilize the bags being distributed by the department of public works.