Hurricane Ida lays waste to New Orleans and Louisiana, weakens into Mississippi

Hurricane Ida lashed the Louisiana coastline and devastated cities miles inland before slowing and heading into Mississippi late Sunday, according to reports. The category 4 storm was among the strongest ever to hit the Gulf Coast, creating millions of evacuees.

While fears of death and injury on a scale similar to 2004's Hurricane Katrina did not materialize, one person died when a tree fell on their house, power was cut to the city of New Orleans, and insurers anticipate up to a quarter of a trillion dollars of property damage. According to NBC News, people in the region who could not leave are "begging for rescue".

Footage of the storm surge: