BATON ROUGE, La, Sept 11, (AP): Hurricane Francine barreled early Wednesday toward Louisiana and is expected to make landfall in coming hours as forecasters raised threats of potentially deadly storm surge, widespread flooding and destructive winds on the northern US Gulf coast. Francine drew fuel from exceedingly warm Gulf of Mexico waters to jump from a tropical storm to a Category 1 hurricane on Tuesday night.

The National Hurricane Center said Francine might even reach Category 2 strength with winds of 96 to 110 mph (155 to 175 kph) before crashing into a fragile coastal region that still hasn't fully recovered from a series of devastating hurricanes since 2020. Louisiana Gov Jeff Landry warned at midday Tuesday - when Francine was still a tropical storm - that residents around south Louisiana and in the heavily populated state capital of Baton Rouge and nearby New Orleans - should "batten down all the hatches” and finish last preparations before a 24-hour window to do so closed.

Once Francine makes landfall, Landry said, residents should stay in place rather than venture out into waterlogged roads and risk blocking first responders or utility crews working to repair power lines. The governor said the Louisiana National Guard is being deployed to parishes that could be impacted by Francine.

They are equipped with food, water, nearly 400 high-water vehicles, about 100 boats and 50 helicopters to respond to the storm, including possible search-and-rescue operations. Francine was centered Tuesday evening about 295 miles (475 kilometers) southwest of Morgan City, Louisiana, and was moving northeast at 10 mph (17 kph), the Miami-based hurricane center said. A hurricane warning was in effect along the Louisiana coast from Cameron eastward to Grand Isle, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of New Orleans, according to the center. A storm surge warning stretched from the Mississippi-Alabama border to the Alabama-Florida border Such a warning means there’s a chance of life-threatening flooding.