Rains, flooding hit Gulf Coast ahead of tropical storm

GULF SHORES, Ala. — Squalls ahead of a rare late-season tropical storm blew in heavy rain late Monday to parts of the Gulf Coast, where residents hunkered down at home and in shelters, anticipating high winds and flooding.

Ida had slowed as it approached the coast. It was about 100 miles south-southwest of Mobile and expected to make land early today before turning east. Tropical storm warnings were out across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida, where governors declared states of emergency.

In Gulf Shores along the coast, some streets were flooded and the city was under a 10 p.m. curfew, and Allen Hastings, general manager of The Original Oyster House, was closing his restaurant even earlier. During Hurricane Ivan in 2004, the restaurant flooded, despite being elevated about 6 feet.

But Hastings, like many along the Gulf Coast, didn't anticipate Ida to be as bad, and knew it has been a quiet Atlantic tropical season until now.

"We're not complaining," he said as the restaurant's awnings whipped in the wind. "I don't think it's going to be bad, but we just have to see what tomorrow brings."

A low-pressure system that Hurricane Ida may have played a role in attracting earlier triggered flooding and landslides in El Salvador that killed at least 130 people. Near New Orleans, a 70-year-old man was feared drowned Monday when trying to help two fishermen whose boat had broken down in the Mississippi River, said Maj. John Marie, a Plaquemines Parish sheriff's spokesman. A wave knocked him into the water.

Ida had been the third hurricane of this year's Atlantic season, which ends Dec. 1, but weakened with maximum sustained winds near 65 mph. Its speed had slowed to 13 mph and was moving north.

The storm was expected to weaken further before making landfall. Rain will move well inland before it does come ashore, said U.S. National Hurricane Center hurricane specialist Robbie Berg. Rainfall could be up to 8 inches in some areas, with most of the coast getting between 3 and 6 inches.

The streets were quiet in downtown Mobile, about 40 miles northwest of Gulf Shores, as many of the stores and restaurants had closed early. Stiff winds with gusts up to 50 mph and sheets of rain made driving hazardous, and many residents opted to stay off the roads, although few said they were leaving town.

Doris Moorman, who was managing the Red Cross shelter in the city, said she staffed a similar shelter last year during Hurricane Gustav that housed more than 500 people. She said she's concerned residents weren't taking the threat seriously, perhaps letting their Gustav experience lull them into a false sense of security.