Mayor Landrieu, City Officials Provide Update on Tropical Storm Nate
Today, Mayor Mitch Landrieu provided an update on Hurricane Nate. According to the National Weather Service, Hurricane Nate has been downgraded to a Tropical Storm.
After the National Weather Service cancelled the Hurricane Warning for New Orleans on the night of Saturday, October 7, Mayor Landrieu ordered that the curfew be lifted. The Storm Surge Warning for New Orleans has also been lifted.
The mandatory evacuation for Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine, and Irish Bayou will be lifted once the nearby flood gates reopen today.
Parking Enforcement
The Department of Public Works will resume parking enforcement on neutral grounds and sidewalks as of Monday, Oct. 9 at 10 a.m. Residents must move their vehicles from the neutral ground and sidewalks.
New Orleans Regional Transit Authority
Regional Transit Authority (RTA) is restoring all modes of transit services today, October 8th following the impacts due to Hurricane Nate.
All bus operations have been completely restored into revenue services, beginning at 4:30am.
Paratransit operations restored services at 7:00am.
Streetcar services on all lines have been fully restored as of 9:00am.
Transdev/RTA services on both the Algiers Point/Canal St. and Lower Algiers/Chalmette ferrries are to resume regularly scheduled revenue services beginning at 11:30am today.
The Algiers Point/Canal St. Ferry will operate every 15 minutes to each bank until 10pm; and the Lower Algiers Chalmette Ferry will operate every 15 minutes to each bank until 9pm tonight.
To view ferry schedules or learn more about New Orleans Ferries, visit www.norta.com, follow @NewOrleansRTA on Twitter and Facebook or call the Customer Care Rideline at 504-248-3900.
Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East Floodgate Openings
The Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East has resumed normal operations. Personnel are doing preliminary damage assessments and searching for debris. They are in the process of reopening flood gates in coordination with LA Department of Transportation and Development.
For more information, visit http://floodauthority.org/closures/
Entergy New Orleans
The storm caused scattered outages in New Orleans, with approximately 300 customers impacted at the peak. Entergy crews have responded to these outages to restore power and to perform inspections for any latent damage requiring attention. Entergy will release additional crews today and return to normal operations.
During the storm, Entergy had 1,800 personnel, including Entergy's line crews and contractors, on alert and ready to safely restore service to customers as quickly as possible.
Customers should visit the Entergy Storm Center website for planning tools that can help guide you through the decisions you need to make. Operation: Storm Ready is a free downloadable guide that helps customers plan and prepare for weather emergencies.
Joint Information Center (JIC) Deactivated
The City has deactivated the Joint Information Center (JIC) at City Hall's Office of Homeland Security, which served as central point of contact for members of the media covering Hurricane Nate, including Louis Armstrong Airport, RTA, NOPD, NOFD, and EMS. Future public information updates will be sent directly from each respective agency.
City Hall, City Facilities to Resume Normal Hours of Operation
City Hall and all other City facilities will reopen on Mon. Oct. 9 at 8 a.m.
NORD Recreation Centers and Facilities
All New Orleans Recreation Development (NORD) Commission recreation centers and facilities will resume regular hours on Monday, Oct. 9.
Parks and Squares Resume Normal Hours of Operation
All parks and squares have returned to the regularly scheduled times.
New Orleans Public Libraries
All New Orleans Public Libraries are scheduled to re-open Monday at 10 a.m.
Sandbag Distribution Has Ended
New Orleans Fire Department (NOFD) has distributed approximately 81,000 free sandbags. NOFD provided sandbags until 7 p.m. yesterday at five different fire stations in anticipation of the effects of Nate.
Update on Drainage System
The Sewerage and Water Board (S&WB) worked closely with New Orleans Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (NOHSEP) and the Mayor's Office to monitor Tropical Storm Nate.
S&WB and its contractors continue to work around the clock to repair all power and pumps to stabilize and strengthen the City's drainage system. Yesterday, S&WB crews brought a 1000 CFS pump back online at DPS 13 and it’s now available for service bringing this drainage pumping station to 100% capacity. Since August, S&WB has repaired eight drainage pumps and two turbines. At this time, 110 of 120 drainage pumps are fully operational. Turbines 1, 3 and 6 are available for service. Twenty-six backup generators, which were mobilized under emergency declaration, are providing additional power to the pump stations. In addition to generators, S&WB has brought in three additional rented pumps, one at DPS 5 and two at DPS 7. Additionally, S&WB is in the process of installing five Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD) Generators at the Carrollton Water Plant and are scheduled to be available for service in the coming weeks.
Updates on pump availability can be found at www.swbno.org.
Catch Basin Cleanings Will Resume Tomorrow
DPW and its contractors will resume catch basin cleaning operations on Monday, Oct. 9.
Prior to the inclement weather, the Department of Public Works (DPW) increased its manpower to clean and unclog catch basins and flush drain lines 7 a.m.- 7 p.m., seven days a week. Fourteen vacuum trucks were in service, including DPW and its contractors. Since the beginning of 2017, a total of 7,326 catch basins have been cleaned in New Orleans, including 4,386 since August.
Residents are encouraged to call 311 to report catch basins that were not fully functioning during the storm. Residents should avoid lifting a catch basin lid or inserting anything into a catch basin. To reduce risk of street flooding, do not park in front of or on a catch basin, and do not dispose of anything in a catch basin.
Hotels and Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
The Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport is conducting normal operations at this time and experienced minimal cancellations on Saturday. Sunday cancellations include: first departures with Southwest Airlines, first departures with Spirit, one departure with American Airlines, delay arrival for one Copa flight, and one inbound and outbound flight with Frontier.
If you are traveling in the coming days, please check your airline’s website for any possible delays or cancellations prior to coming to the Airport.
New Orleans hotels remain open. The cruise ship Carnival Dream, scheduled to arrive at the Port of New Orleans this morning, will travel to New Orleans as soon as the mouth of the Mississippi River at Southwest Pass reopens. Hospitality industry businesses that closed during the curfew will return to normal service hours. City officials are in contact with hotels and conventions in town through the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau (NOCVB) in order to ensure safety of New Orleans visitors as well as New Orleans residents.
Transportation Network Companies
Uber and Lyft resumed operations, after suspending them in accordance with the curfew. Additionally, Lyft is now operating their “Relief Rides” program which assists those in need of transportation during the weather event.
Sanitation Collection Resume Normal Hours of Operation
Sanitation collection has returned to normal hours of operation.
Residents are reminded that it is their responsibility, by City Code, to always return garbage and recycling carts to their property, after all collections. There may be a cost associated with obtaining a replacement garbage cart and there will be a cost to obtain a replacement recycling cart.
311 Hours
311 will close at noon on Sun., Oct. 8 and return to normal operating hours on Monday, Oct. 9. Residents are encouraged to call 311 for general information and to report non-life threatening emergencies.
City Working with Local, State and Federal Partners on Preparations
Throughout this event, the City has been working with local, federal and state partners such as Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP), Louisiana National Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers to understand the risks, vulnerabilities, and how the City can keep residents safe, which is our top priority.
Additionally, Mayor Landrieu has led six tabletop briefings since October 5 with the National Weather Service and City officials on Hurricane Nate.
Stay Informed
Additionally, residents are advised to look for updates regularly posted on ready.nola.gov, on Twitter @NOLAReady, and on Facebook @NOLAReady.
Sign up for NOLA Ready alerts, which will notify residents of emergency situations, at www.nola.gov/ready/alert/.