Gulf coast from Louisiana to Alabama bracing for the approach of Ida

Residents across Louisiana's coast are taking one last day to prepare for what is being described as a "life-altering" Hurricane Ida. Alabama’s Gulf coast is under a Tropical Storm watch and could be lashed with heavy rains and wind on the east side of the system, which is traditionally the roughest side of a hurricane. Biloxi and Gulfport, also part of APR’s broadcast audience, is currently under a Tropical Storm Warning. Ida is expected to bring winds as high as 140 mph when it slams ashore, possibly on the same day that Katrina hit Louisiana sixteen years ago. A combination of voluntary and mandatory evacuations has been called for cities and communities across the region including New Orleans. That’s where the mayor ordered a mandatory evacuation for areas outside the city's levee system and a voluntary evacuation for residents inside the levee system. But since the storm quickly escalated in intensity, Mayor LaToya Cantrell said it wasn't possible to order a mandatory evacuation of the entire city.