Louisiana remains in the sights of what Gov. John Bel Edwards called an unprecedented "one-two punch" of hurricanes that will blanket the state's coastline with a storm surge as high as 10 feet in some areas and potentially cause flash flooding in others.
Hurricane Marco is expected to make landfall Monday afternoon as a Category 1 storm near Morgan City in southeastern Louisiana, while Tropical Storm Laura is expected to strengthen into a Category 2 storm that will lash southwestern Louisiana Wednesday.
"We have two storms that are unfortunately headed to Louisiana," Edwards said Sunday. "It poses a challenge, quite frankly, that we haven't seen before."
In fact, Benjamin Schott, the meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service stations in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, said such a confluence of storms hasn't happened in the Gulf of Mexico in recorded history.
"There's never been anything like this we've seen before," Schott said.
Hurricane warnings will likely have covered all of southern Louisiana by Monday morning.
"These storms are not to be taken lightly, especially because there are two of them," Edwards said.
The governor and Schott said the biggest danger to people and property will be from coastal surge and inland flooding.
"Wind is certainly a hazard, but the primary threat is water because of storm surge, flooding and river flooding," Edwards said.
Schott said many areas could see 5 to 10 inches of rain with isolated spots of 15 inches from Marco and Laura with Marco's impact mostly in southeastern Louisiana and Laura's farther west. Acadiana may see less than 1 inch of rain from Marco.
If the two hurricanes overlap, Schott said, the forecast could grow to 1 to 2 feet of rain.
Edwards said planning for the hurricanes in the COVID pandemic "complicates things greatly."
Because of the COVID threat, Edwards said the state only plans to activate large shelters with congregate settings "as a last resort."
Instead, the governor said, he's working with the federal government to use hotels and motels if large evacuations become necessary. That requires permission from the White House, which Edwards is seeking.
Edwards said he doesn't know yet how the hurricanes will impact his decision on whether to keep Louisiana in Phase 2 with bar closures, mask mandates and other occupancy restrictions when his current executive order expires Friday.
"We have a whole new set of things we have to think about," Edwards said.
Edwards said the state is positioning 110 buses across southern Louisiana in case they are needed for evacuations, while the Louisiana National Guard is also positioning its assets like high-water vehicles along the lines of expected impact.
The governor has asked President Trump for a federal disaster declaration.
Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.
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