Tropical Storm Barry is churning in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday as the dangerous storm nears the coast, threatening to bring heavy rain, flash flooding and storm surge.

Tropical storm conditions are expected in Louisiana on Friday and hurricane warnings were issued for southeastern parts of the state. The storm is expected to make landfall late Friday into early Saturday.

“This is going to be a major weather event for a huge portion of the state,” Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards warned Thursday.

Heavy rains already inundated New Orleans on Wednesday, flooding streets and homes and leaving drivers stranded. As much as 9 inches of rain fell in the city, with more to come.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell declared a state of emergency in the city, but the city has not issued evacuation orders; Cantrell said Thursday, “sheltering in place is our strategy.” Read more

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