Hurricane Francine makes landfall, bringing destructive winds and dangerous storm surge with her

BATON ROUGE, La. – Hurricane Francine barreled into southern Louisiana on Wednesday evening as a category 2 storm , making landfall with destructive 100 mph winds and dangerous storm surge along the Bayou state’s coastline.

The eye of Francine moved onshore at 5 p.m. CT in Terrebonne Parish continuing to bring hurricane -force winds inland into the southern region of the state near Baton Rouge .

As stormy conditions arrived Wednesday afternoon, Louisiana officials urged residents to stay put until first responders could safely reach them if needed. Conditions created by Francine also brought the threat of tornadoes and severe thunderstorms , which will continue into Wednesday night and early Thursday.

Hurricane Francine aftermath could lead to rise in bacterial infections in South, CDC warns

As of the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center (NHC), Francine is located about 30 miles southwest of Morgan City , Louisiana, or about 85 miles southwest of New Orleans , and moving northeast at about 17 mph. Maximum sustained winds are near 100 mph with higher gusts.

Conditions deteriorated enough by Wednesday afternoon that all flights into and out of New Orleans International Airport were canceled .

Hurricane Francine disrupting travel from Texas to Florida as she prepares to make landfall

Ahead of Francine’s arrival, President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for the Bayou State.

“After declaring a state of emergency, we have now determined that this storm is of such severity that an effective response is beyond the capabilities of the state and local governments,” Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry said. “This federal assistance is needed to save lives and property.”

Some parishes issued mandatory curfews from Wednesday afternoon until sunrise on Thursday, including Cameron Parish where flooding was already happening prior to landfall.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR MORNING REPORT NEWSLETTER

Heavy rain and flooding were occurring in New Orleans on Wednesday evening, where FOX Weather Meteorologist Bob Van Dillion reported businesses along Bourbon Street remained open.

Power outages were creeping up on Wednesday after landfall with more than 20,500 outages across Louisiana, according to Poweroutage.us.

The NHC said Francine is expected to take a gradual turn toward the north, bringing the center of Francine across southeastern Louisiana and southwestern and central Mississippi on Thursday.

Francine became a hurricane on Sept. 10, marking the peak of the 2024 hurricane season when a named storm is most likely to be roaming the Atlantic Basin. As Francine heads north and eventually dissipates, the NHC is also tracking several other systems in the Atlantic .

For top headlines, breaking news and more, visit nypost.com.