New Orleans and southeastern Louisiana will have “brutal,” below-freezing wind chill temperatures Monday and Tuesday, the National Weather Service says.
Why it matters: Frostbite and hypothermia are possible, along with frozen pipes.
The big picture: The arctic blast that coated north Louisiana in ice is settling into New Orleans, bringing the coldest air so far of the season.
- NWS issued an extreme cold warning for New Orleans, a rare occurrence that is used when temperatures or wind chills pose an imminent threat to life or property.
- Expect “dangerously cold wind chills,” NWS says. New Orleans is forecast to feel like 15 degrees Monday morning and 21 degrees on Tuesday.
- Residents should dress in layers when outside, keep pets indoors and protect pipes and plants.
Threat level: Two men died in Caddo Parish over the weekend due to hypothermia, state health officials say.
What to know
Transportation: Officials are monitoring for ice Monday morning in New Orleans, but NWS says it’s more likely north of the city.
- Roads and bridges remain hazardous in other parts of the state, DOTD says.
- I-10 was fully open in Louisiana as of last night, per DOTD’s real-time traffic map.
Outages: About 87,000 customers were without power in Louisiana as of Sunday night, according to Entergy’s outage map, mainly in north Louisiana.
- No major outages were reported on the South Shore as of Sunday night.
Schools: Many are closed Monday, including in New Orleans. See WWL’s list…