NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) – Slow-moving Tropical Storm Lee strengthened as it lumbered toward the Louisiana coast on Saturday, bringing torrential rains that will put the flood defenses of low-lying New Orleans to the test.
The storm is expected to reach the Louisiana coast later on Saturday and bring up to 20 inches of rain to southeast Louisiana over the next few days, including to New Orleans, which was battered by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.
The center of Lee was 45 miles southwest of Morgan City, with maximum winds of 60 miles per hour, the hurricane center said. Lee's winds were expected to stay below the 74 mph threshold of hurricane strength.
But the prospect of flooding in low-lying New Orleans evoked memories of Hurricane Katrina, which flooded 80 percent of the city, killed 1,500 people and caused more than $80 billion in damage. Half of the city lies below sea level and is protected by a system of levees and flood gates.
The city's extensive levee system is capable of processing about one inch of rainfall per hour, but the storm's slow-moving nature could bring challenges, officials said.
EVACUATIONS
Low-lying parishes around New Orleans saw rising waters, which covered some roadways in Plaquemines and St. Bernard parishes, but no homes or businesses were threatened. Some residents in Jefferson Parish were ordered to evacuate.
Periodic breaks in the rainfall allowed the city's giant pumps to catch up with the water flow and clear standing water, said Jefferson Parish President John Young.
"Everything looks good," Young told local television. "The pumps are keeping up with the water. We are getting some street flooding."
Lee will weaken once it hits land, but it will lose strength more slowly than normal due to the marshy nature of the Louisiana coast, the hurricane center said.
Lee's northeasterly track could bring heavy rains to Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and the Appalachian Mountains next week.
Major offshore producers like Royal Dutch Shell, Exxon Mobil Corp and BP Plc shut down platforms and evacuated staff earlier this week.
Shell began returning workers to its offshore Perdido platform in the western Gulf of Mexico on Saturday.
About half the U.S. offshore oil production, all based in the Gulf of Mexico, and a third of offshore gas production were shut as of Friday, according to the U.S. government. Most of that output should quickly return once the storm passes.
Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal on Friday warned that heavy rains, substantial winds and tidal surges from the Gulf of Mexico could produce flash flooding in parts of New Orleans throughout the Labor Day holiday weekend.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Katia weakened to near tropical storm strength as it churned in the Atlantic Ocean, 485 miles east-northeast of the northern Leeward Islands. Katia had maximum winds of 75 mph, moving northwest at 10 miles per hour.
(Additional reporting by Erwin Seba in Houston, Writing by Chris Baltimore; Editing by Vicki Allen)
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