City of New Orleans Provides Update on Hurricane Sally, Expecting No Significant Impacts

Today, the City of New Orleans provided updates on services set to resume as significant impacts from Hurricane Sally are no longer anticipated in the local area. Residents are encouraged to stay weather aware now and through the remainder of hurricane season.  

The National Hurricane Center has canceled the Tropical Storm Warning and Flash Flood Watch for Orleans Parish. The Storm Surge Warning remains in effect for areas outside of the levee system. The evacuation order for these areas will continue until the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority is able to safely reopen the Highway 90 and Highway 11 roadway gates. 

Mayor LaToya Cantrell and City public safety officials thank residents for taking Hurricane Sally seriously, making preparations, and heeding warnings. Please continue to stay weather aware as we remain in peak hurricane season with very active tropics. 

City Services

With heavy rain no longer forecast, parking restrictions on neutral grounds and sidewalks will go back into effect at 8 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16. Residents are asked to remove their vehicles from neutral grounds by that time.  

Regularly scheduled trash and recycling collection will resume tomorrow. Wednesday customers should place their bins curbside after 4 p.m. today. As a reminder, collections were canceled today due to forecast storm impacts and those customers will be serviced on their second collection day, which is Friday. 

City Hall, NORDC facilities, and libraries are closed today and will resume normal operations on Wednesday. 

Transit 

The New Orleans Regional Transit Authority is in the process of resuming transit service. Bus and streetcar service is expected to be fully operational by 4 p.m. today. Ferry service remains suspended due to port restrictions.  

Schools 

NOLA Public Schools (NOLA-PS) is announcing that all distance learning classes will resume on Wednesday, Sept. 16 and the reopening of the NOLA-PS central office and school buildings.   

Additionally, this past Monday, some schools were set to begin in-person instruction for PreK-4th grade students, yet those plans are delayed through at least Wednesday of this week.  Those schools that planned to reopen in-person instruction this week have made adjustments, with some schools planning to initiate in-person instruction starting Thursday, Sept. 17. Families impacted should receive communications from their schools on the revised reopening timelines for those grades. Grades 5th -12th will remain in distance learning per the current re-opening plans laid out by the District earlier this month.  

Food service will resume on Wednesday, Sept. 16.   

COVID-19 Testing 

Drive-thru and walk-up COVID-19 testing sites will resume as previously scheduled starting Wednesday. Testing schedules are updated at ready.nola.gov/mobile-testing. 

Evacuee Resource Center 

The Hurricane Laura Evacuee Resource Center, now operated by Hands On New Orleans, will reopen Wednesday and will continue to provide supplies and services to evacuees Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, visit ready.nola.gov/welcome. 

Mutual Aid 

Orleans Parish Communication District (OPCD) Executive Director, and Louisiana Telecommunications Emergency Response Team (LA-TERT) State Coordinator, Tyrell Morris, has placed LA-TERT on standby and is prepared to support the teams in Mississippi and Alabama should their emergency communications systems become overwhelmed due to the effects of Hurricane Sally. Emergency Telecommunicators who wish to join the LA-TERT in anticipation of this storm should review the requirements and submit their application as soon as possible at https://laapco.org/tert.