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A2 UP FRONT
Monday 9 october 2017
A weakened Nate brings flooding, power outages to Gulf Coast

Continued from Front be unfounded. The storm
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant passed to the east of New
praised state and local Orleans, and Mayor Mitch
officials and coastal Landrieu lifted a curfew on
residents for working the city known for its all-
together to avoid loss of night partying.
life. “Hurricane Nate had
Lee Smithson, director the potential to wreak
of the state emergency havoc on Louisiana, but
management agency, thankfully, we were largely
said damage from Nate spared major damage,”
was held down in part Gov. John Bel Edwards
because of work done said in a statement.
and lessons learned from In Alabama, Dauphin
Katrina. Island Mayor Jeff Collier
“If that same storm would said he woke up around
have hit us 15 years ago, 3 a.m. Sunday to discover
the damage would have knee-deep water in his
been extensive and we yard. Although some
would have had loss of life.” homes and cars on the
Smithson said of Nate. “But island had flooded, Collier
we have rebuilt the coast said he hadn’t heard of
in the aftermath of Katrina anyone needing rescue.
higher and stronger.” “We didn’t think it would
Nate knocked out power A shrimp boat is sunk at its mooring along the Pascagoula River in Moss Point, Miss., on Sunday, be quite that bad,” he
to more than 100,000 Oct. 8, 2017, after Hurricane Nate made landfall on Mississippi’s Gulf Coast. David Nelson said the said. “It kind of snuck up on
residents in Mississippi, boat belongs to his father and will be repaired. us in the wee hours of the
Alabama, Louisiana and (AP Photo/Jeff Amy) morning.”
Florida, but crews were scattered outages during on his father’s sailboat Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula At landfall in Mississippi,
working on repairs. the storm, while Florida at a Biloxi marina after late Friday and entered the the fast-moving storm had
As of Sunday afternoon, Gov. Rick Scott said 6,800 daybreak, found another Gulf of Mexico, it drenched maximum sustained winds
Alabama Power said more customers had lost power boat had sunk, its sail Central America with rains near 85 mph (140 kph),
than 62,000 customers in his state. still fluttering in Nate’s that left at least 22 people the U.S. National Hurricane
remained without Mississippi’s Gulf Coast diminishing winds. Stewart dead. But Nate didn’t Center in Miami said.
power, while utilities and casinos got approval to was relieved to find his approach the intensity of Nate steadily weakened
cooperatives in Mississippi reopen in midmorning after father’s craft intact. Harvey, Irma and Maria — after its first landfall in a
said more than 21,000 closing Saturday as the “I got lucky on this one,” he powerful storms that left sparsely populated area
were without electricity. storm approached. said. behind massive destruction of Plaquemines Parish,
In Louisiana, there were Sean Stewart, checking Before Nate sped past during 2017’s exceptionally Louisiana.
busy hurricane season. At 5 p.m. EDT, the center
“We are thankful because of Nate was about 75 miles
this looked like it was (120 kilometers) south of
going to be a freight train Nashville, Tennessee. Nate
barreling through the was expected to bring 3 to
city,” said Vincent Creel, a 6 inches of rain to the Deep
spokesman for the city of South, eastern Tennessee
Biloxi. Valley and southern
The head of the Federal Appalachians through
Emergency Management Monday. The Ohio Valley,
Agency said the four central Appalachians and
hurricanes that have struck Northeast could also get
the U.S. and its territories heavy rain before the storm
this year have “strained” exits Maine on Tuesday.
resources, with roughly 85 Biloxi city employees
percent of the agency’s worked before dawn to
forces deployed. clear Highway 90, where
“We’re still working massive sand, logs and even a
issues in Harvey, Irma, as large trash bin had been
well as the issues in Puerto washed onto the four-lane,
Rico and the Virgin Islands, beachfront road. Despite
and now this one,” FEMA the debris, there was little
Administrator Brock Long to no visible damage to
told ABC’s “This Week.” structures. A handful of
The federal government businesses had reopened
declared emergencies before dawn, and the
in Louisiana, Mississippi, storm surge that washed
Alabama and Florida. across the highway had
Nate initially made landfall receded by 6 a.m.
Saturday evening in Mississippi DOT crews had
Louisiana, but fears that to remove over 1,000
it would overwhelm the pumpkins blown onto
fragile pumping system in Highway 90 in Pass Christian,
New Orleans proved to west of Gulfport.q