Ida's Serious Impact to Coast and at Sea

Ida is on track to make an unusually late landfall for a tropical cyclone upon the Gulf Coast. Landfall is forecast for Tuesday. Up through the time of landfall and for a while thereafter, a range of serious impacts will accompany Ida, both at the coast and at sea.

As a hurricane over the open Gulf well into the day on Monday, Ida's high winds will kick up high waves of up to 20 feet. While the highest waves will stay well off shore, they will still lead to high, rough surf along many Gulf Coast beaches.

High winds of 40 to 60 mph will belt the coast in a swathe to either side of Ida's landfall. The strongest coastal winds will strike on Tuesday, when an early landfall is forecast.

Tides will run higher than normal through Tuesday along most of the Gulf coast from Florida to Texas. At the time of high tide, minor flooding will take place. Then again, there will also be some storm surge along with the landfall of Ida. Status at landfall is forecast to be as a tropical storm, so a storm surge of a few feet will be possible.

New Orleans, highly susceptible to any tropical cyclone, is forecast to be outside of the direct path of Ida. Minor tide flooding will happen in unprotected areas and there will be rain heavy enough to trigger flooding.

Another storm impact will be that of flooding rain. Excessive rain will threaten flooding in a corridor from southern and eastern Louisiana eastward into Georgia and the Carolinas.

Story By AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Jim Andrews