Francine weakened after hitting Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane and causing power outages for hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses. The storm surge affected coastal communities, including flooding fears in New Orleans, while heavy rains spread across the northern Gulf Coast. Moving northward over Mississippi, Francine was expected to be downgraded to a tropical depression, with forecasts of 4 to 6 inches of rain in parts of Mississippi and neighboring states, posing a risk of flash flooding in areas such as Jackson, Birmingham, Memphis, and Atlanta.
The storm made landfall in Louisiana with 100 mph winds before moving towards New Orleans, resulting in intense rainfall. While there were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries, TV broadcasts showed waves crashing over sea walls, water flooding streets, and trees swaying in high winds. Power outages in Louisiana reached over 390,000, with an additional 46,000 outages in Mississippi. In Morgan City, fire chief Alvin Cockerham described the storm as worse than anticipated, leading to precautions being taken.
Residents like Laura Leftwich in Morgan City sheltered in place, experiencing strong winds that swept away structures outside. The storm drew energy from warm Gulf of Mexico waters, strengthening to a Category 2 hurricane before weakening to a tropical storm. There was also a potential risk of tornadoes from Francine. Emergency declarations were made by President Joe Biden and governors of Louisiana and Mississippi, with National Guard assistance deployed to impacted areas for possible search and rescue operations.
Louisiana and Mississippi were expected to receive significant rainfall amounts, and historical data showed the vulnerability of the region to hurricanes. Various precautionary measures were taken, such as the distribution of sandbags by the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency and school closures in affected areas. The community of Morgan City, situated on the Atchafalaya River in Louisiana, faced the impacts of the storm as it passed through.
