- On Friday, Cuba was showered with heavy wind and rain by Hurricane Ida.
- Hurricane Ida is the fourth hurricane and ninth named storm of 2021.
- Louisiana hospitals are already near capacity with COVID-19 patients as Ida enters the Gulf Coast.
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Hurricane Ida passed through Cuba on Friday and is forecasted to make landfall in Louisiana and Mississippi on August 29, the same day Hurricane Katrina struck the area 16 years ago.
The center of Ida is projected to move across the Gulf of Mexico Saturday night and early Sunday, make landfall along the coast of Louisiana Sunday afternoon or evening, and continue inland over portions of Louisiana and western Mississippi on Monday, according to a public advisory from the National Hurricane Center.
Ida marks the ninth named storm of 2021 and the fourth storm to develop into a hurricane. As Ida approaches the Gulf Coast, Louisiana hospitals are inundated with COVID-19 patients, with approximately 68% of state hospital beds and 84% of all ICU beds filled, according to The Daily Advertiser’s hospital capacity table.