Ida inflicts 'catastrophic' destruction on Louisiana

Rescuers on Monday combed through the "catastrophic" damage Hurricane Ida inflicted on Louisiana, a day after the fierce storm killed at least two people, stranded others in rising floodwaters and sheared the roofs off homes. New Orleans was still mostly without power more than 24 hours after Ida slammed into the Louisiana coast as a Category 4 storm, exactly 16 years to the day that Hurricane Katrina made landfall, wreaking deadly havoc. While search and rescue missions focus on those who sheltered in place, local officials urged people who had evacuated not to return yet as there was a lack of services and trees, debris and downed power lines continue to pose a hazard.

"I know people are anxious to get back home, but I am urging you to wait until you get the all clear from your local officials. The storm may have passed but dangers still remain," Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards said at  televised a press conference.Two deaths have been confirmed as crews began fanning out in boats and  off-road vehicles to search communities cut off by the hurricane.

A man was also missing after apparently being killed by an alligator. Images of people being plucked from flooded cars and pictures of destroyed homes surfaced on social media, while the damage in New Orleans itself remained limited. New Orleans Airport said all incoming and outgoing flights slated for Tuesday were canceled, while airlines had scrapped 197 flights scheduled on Wednesday.

Ida -- which was downgraded to a tropical depression on Monday - knocked out power for more than a million properties across Louisiana, according to outage tracker Power Outage. US. "I was there 16 years ago. The wind seems worse this time but the damage seems less bad," said French Quarter resident Dereck Terry, surveying his neighborhood in flip-flops and a T-shirt, umbrella in hand.

"I have a broken window. Some tiles from the roof are on the streets andwater came inside," the 53-year-old retired pharmacist added.According to Edwards the levee system in the affected parishes had "really held up very well, otherwise we would be facing much more problems today".In the town of Jean Lafitte, just south of New Orleans, Mayor Tim Kerner said the rapidly rising waters had overtopped the 7.5-foot-high (2.3-meter) levees."Total devastation, catastrophic, our town levees have been overtopped," Kerner told ABC-affiliate WGNO.