In Louisiana, confidence high as Hurricane Isaac approaches

Louisiana officials said Tuesday they’re well-prepared to weather Hurricane Isaac, which had winds of up to 80 mph and was expected to make landfall overnight.

“We are officially in the fight, and the city of New Orleans is on the front lines,” Mayor Mitch Landrieu said at an afternoon briefing.

Although the storm remained a Category 1 hurricane, Landrieu cautioned residents not to underestimate the damage it could do.

PHOTOS: Bracing for Isaac

“Do not let this storm lull you into complacency,” he said, advising people to shelter in place.

“In my travels across the city starting very, very early this morning, it appears the citizens are heeding the warnings and doing a good job of boarding up their residences and staying off the streets,” he said. But added that he was “somewhat dismayed” to see a few daredevils out on Lakeshore Drive “trying to experience high water.”

“The storm, because of how slow it has gone, is going to require great patience. We have to continue to act as though it is a very serious threat,” he said.

“It’s better to be bored than to get hurt. There are things about [Category] 1 and 2 storms that will kill you. I don’t want to be standing here in a few days mourning a loss that was avoidable.”

Landrieu advised residents to stay inside -- and not to venture out, stand on utility hole covers, or risk getting hit by flying debris or stranded in rising flood waters.

The mayor specifically warned people away from an I-10 underpass by a train trestle, an area that has proved troublesome in the past. Then he smiled ruefully.

“We’re going to rescue somebody from there,” he said.

Landrieu said city police and firefighters were poised to come to residents’ aid as soon as the hurricane allows, assisted by about 600 National Guard members.

“As soon as the storm passes, we are going to be in a search and rescue mode,” Landrieu said.

New Orleans Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas warned against “sightseeing along the lakefront” during the storm and said 600 officers would be policing neighborhoods Tuesday to prevent possible looting or barricade jumping. The department drew criticism and faced investigations and an ongoing overhaul after Hurricane Katrina.

“We will be aggressive. We will be professional and constitutional,” Serpas said.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said at a Tuesday briefing that about 1,400 people had evacuated to shelters run by the state and parishes.

“There are plenty of slots still available,” he said.

A half-dozen nursing homes and nearly three dozen assisted-living facilities in the New Orleans area evacuated some residents ahead of the storm, he said.

Jindal, a Republican, again called on President Obama to expand his limited disaster declaration to a full one that would provide more compensation for state and local government storm-related expenses.

“We have learned from past experiences that you cannot wait and you have to push the federal bureaucracy. We think it’s important to be aggressive and do everything we can to protect our people and our property,” Jindal said.

U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Peter Gautier said the Lower Mississippi River was closed Tuesday due to the storm, with canals cleared to the east and with Coast Guard staff completing closures to the west

“Now is time to be off the water,” Gautier said. “You’ve got to find a safe storm mooring. We’re now entering that time period when the Coast Guard is going to be hard pressed to launch a helicopter or a boat to come get you.”

At Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport on Tuesday, 250 flights were canceled and as many were canceled in advance for Wednesday. Although the airport was locked down, officials were hoping to reopen Thursday, a spokesman said.

New Orleans City Council President Stacy Head praised the coordination among local, state and federal agencies, something she said was lacking before Hurricane Katrina.

“This is what government was supposed to do years ago and didn’t,” Head said. “We are as ready as we possibly can be for this storm.”

Before sheltering in place Tuesday, Head said she went for a run on St. Charles Avenue, where the streetcars had already stopped running. There, she said, she saw many neighbors out for a last gasp of fresh air.

“I feel the same impatience that everyone does — we just want to get this over with,” she said.

“This is all of our city — we’re all going to have to clean it up.”

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