Hurricane threatens America’s State of Louisiana, oil corps shutdown

Oti Francis

Reports gathered on Sunday disclose the devastating impact of Hurricane Ida on the people of Louisiana. Residents of New Orleans, a major city in the state, are beginning to feel the damages as cases of mass flooding and destruction raise public concern.

According to the National Hurricane, winds of the Category 4 hurricane were reported to possess an approaching speed of 150 miles (241 kilometers) per hour. Louisiana remains shocked as only two other storms with winds as powerful as the Ida have made such landfall.

“I feel sick to my stomach watching,” Weatherman at the National Hurricane Center Eric Blake, told his Twitter followers that it was quite unsettling and that he felt sick to his stomach watching the tragedy unfold. “This is a very sobering morning.” He added.

Although it was 16 years ago, August’s Hurricane Ida still recalls the damages done by Hurricane Katrina,  a terrible storm that haunts the U.S. till date in its history of natural disasters. Consequently, these events spotlight the state of the infrastructure rebuilt in the region after the Katrina, and how they are about to face yet another endurance test.

Experts say the Ida is expected to come ashore southwest of New Orleans, and raise up ocean levels as much as 16 feet (4.9 meters) with a torrent of 2 feet rain. The storm strength, according to reports, will pull roofs from houses. Trees and power poles on sight will be snapped, and power outages could last weeks.

Part of its tracking activities which includes Hurricane Ida, the hurricane center is also following four suspected storms in the Atlantic and Hurricane Nora troubling the Pacific coast of Mexico.

Residents of New Orleans have been advised to begin evacuation or seek shelter. Hospital wards and other notable areas have their levee gates shut. Oil production exercises in the Mexican Gulf have also been closed with populations leaving the region.

Speaking on the storm, CoreLogic, a California-based finance, property, and business intelligence corporation says if caution is not taken, the Ida could render close to a million residents along the coast homeless.  A disaster modeler at Enki Research, Chuck Watson has added that industrial assets including plants, refineries, and the Offshore Oil Port of Louisiana may not be spared. Losses could be running into 40 billion dollars.

FlightAware a flight-tracking service says as of Sunday, over 500 flights had been canceled in New Orleans, Dallas, and Houston, cancellations have also spilled into Monday.

America’s President Joe Biden has also declared a state of emergency for the State of Louisiana. 

Oil and Crops

On oil grounds, oil stakeholders and explorers have discontinued activities, an equivalent of 1 million barrels of daily crude production. IOCs like Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BP Plc, and others have begun shutdown of their offshore assets and have started evacuating crews.

The Gulf hosts at least 16 percent of America’s crude production, 2 percent of its natural gas output, and 48 percent of the country’s refining capacity. Production on materials like cotton, corn, soybean, and sugarcane crops may also be affected, says Maxar meteorologist Don Keeney. 

Credit: Rigzone, Bloomberg.

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