Hurricane Ida was so powerful it made the Mississippi River flow backwards for several hours

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As Hurricane Ida roared ashore in Louisiana on Sunday, the storm's force was so strong it temporarily reversed the flow of the Mississippi River.
As Hurricane Ida roared ashore in Louisiana on Sunday, the storm’s force was so strong it temporarily reversed the flow of the Mississippi River.

The flow of the Mississippi River was reversed upstream as Hurricane Ida made landfall and pushed inland.

Storm surge and strong winds from Hurricane Ida stopped the flow of the Mississippi River near New Orleans on Sunday and actually caused it to reverse – something the US Geological Survey says is “extremely uncommon.”

According to USGS, the Mississippi River’s stream was reversed for approximately four hours near Belle Chasse, Lousiana, which is located in Plaquemines Parish.

I remember, offhand, that there was some flow reversal of the Mississippi River during Hurricane Katrina, but it is extremely uncommon,” reported Scott Perrien, a supervising hydrologist with the USGS Lower Mississippi Gulf Water Science Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The river level on Sunday rose about 7 feet due to storm surge pushing up the river at the USGS gauge in Belle Chasse, about 20 miles south of New Orleans in southeastern Louisiana.

During that time, the flow of the river slowed from about 2 feet per second down to about half a foot per second in the other direction.

USGS specialist: “The river is feeling the effects of the storm over a large area. All the way up to Baton Rouge the river has risen 1.5 feet in the past 12 hours as the surge pushes up the river. And the water level will likely rise more in the coming hours here in Baton Rouge.

Hurricane Ida made landfall Sunday afternoon in Port Fourchon, Louisiana, with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph. Ida is projected to continue inland over portions of Louisiana and western Mississippi on Monday, according to an advisory from the National Hurricane Center.

Hurricane Ida’s landfall comes on the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which hit Louisiana in 2005 as a Category 3 storm with 125 mph sustained winds. Storm surge with Katrina measured up to 24-28 feet, according to the NHC.

By comparison, Hurricane Ida is forecast to bring a lower storm surge of 12-16 feet to some areas of southeast Louisiana, the NHC says. And near New Orleans it’s expected to be even lower: 8-12 feet outside New Orleans and 5-8 feet along Lake Pontchartrain.

That’s because the wind field was larger for Katrina: 90 miles from center at landfall, compared to 50 miles for Ida. [CNN, Insider]

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4 Comments

  1. In 1813 there was an earthquake near St. Louis, it formed a lake, there now and the River went north for two days.

  2. Well, I pray for the poor people subject to the rule of their corrupt political buttclowns. Unfortunately, it is almost every state and city now.

    Probably should be calling up the Cajun Navy heroes to help save the people and their pets.

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