xfinity xfi. so powerful, it keeps one-upping itself. can your internet do that? good evening. you're live in the cnn newsroom. i'm poppy harlow in new york. we are following major developments on two fronts. first hurricane ida rapidly intensifying in the gulf, barreling towards the louisiana coast, expected to make a landfall tomorrow as an

extremely dangerous category 4 hrk, 16 years to the day that hurricane katrina hit. some could see storm surges of up to 15 feet. the governor warns that ida will be one of the strongest storms to hit the state since at least the 1850s and the clock is stick ticking. >> you have a few more hours, really, to prepare, because early tomorrow morning we're going to have weather degrade rapidly. >> this news breaking just in to cnn, the embassy has moments ago issued a security threats telling all u.s. citizens in the vicinity of the kabul airport to leave the air immediately. this h is due to a specific and credible threat and it comes just hours after troubling new warning from biden on that front. the president saying his demanders are telling him that

another terrorist attack in the kabul airport is, quote, highly likely in the next 24 to 36 hours. and as follows, the pentagon kirmg that two high profile isis-k targets were killed in a drone strike overnight, retaliation for the attack that killed servicemen and killed others. the deadline to leave rapidly approaches as evacuations continue through all of this. clearly, there is a lot of breaking news to get to tonight. more on afghanistan in a emmonth. let's get the latest on hurricane ida. steve sadir joins us. a cat 4 tomorrow. >> looking like that, poppy. in fact, it's still a category 2 but we're getting valuable data. the national hurricane system will cycle that information and give it to us in the 11:00 p.m. advisory. the tropical storm force winds

extend outside ward 125 miles. that's pretty much like we had with henri last week. the pressure is dropping, which means the winds are going to pick up. landfall around midday tomorrow. expected as a category 4. the angle of approach means everything. it's going to drop a lot of rainfall and by wednesday, it's in west virginia. it will continue through the parishes in louisiana and by afternoon spreading across several states in the southeast. the circulation is important. where this eye is as according to where we're going to find it in reference to new orleans, and that all-important corridor between new orleans and up toward baton rouge. this could give us catastrophic wind damage where the winds could even be stronger as katrina when it moved in as a category 3. we're talking several miles inland, with the high surge we're going to be finding heavy

rain trying to flow outside ward through the rivers and it's going to impede the process. the water is going to build up and the rain totals are 15, even 20 inches. >> it's just remarkable and tragedy that this is happening 16 years to the day that katrina hit. >> yes. >> can you talk about the similarities, maybe the differences between the two storms, but how much better the area is now, right? >> i'm glad you brought that up. i think what katrina as well as sandy did was unvail our vul neshabilities. ida, the national hurricane center had a bead on this. where was it going? louisiana. katrina had a longer life cycle. at one point katrina got up to a category 5. it carried the water. the wind field was broader than ida, like four or five time. when it comes to landfall, if we

have a category 4 compared to a 3, there are major differences, mainly with the winds. it could knock out power for weeks. that's not the floodwaters are with the heavy rainfall in the hours that will precede. >> tom, thank you for your team for staying on top of this. we'll get back to you. let's go to jason in houma. look, the warning from state officials is if you're going to get out you've got to get out in the next three, four hours. >> right. absolutely, poppy, because time is running out. if you look at where we are right now here in homa, houma expected to be ground zero of this hurricane, and basically right now it's pretty much of a ghost town. we've seen a number of boarded-up buildings, some buildings with sandbags in front of their doors and a that's exactly what emergency.

they are under evacuation. some 35,000 residents live in houma. they are telling residents it is for your own safety to get out. the sheriff predicts that anywhere between 60 and he says as high as 80% of the people who live in how many ear and the surrounding area have more loon atlanticly evacuated. 80% would be a high number but not all the people we found said they want to leave. so you're not going to evacuate. do you have any concerns about staying? >> tornadoes and wind damage. i'm worried about what we're going to come to, go down that way. >> if they have any damage here, we have nothing. >> is there anything any can say to convince you to evacuate? >> drive me now? because i ain't getting on no

interstate. i'm scared. i'm more scared of the interstate than staying in the house right here. >> so emergency officials say this is going to be a severe wind event. this is going to be a severe flooding event, severe water event. that's can why you've got the governor, you've got the sheriff saying time is running out, if you're going to leave, the time is now. >> i hope people heed this warning. new orleans sits 55 miles east of houma. look, it's so close, officials are urging residents to take this threat seriously, as they anticipate big flooding, damning winds up to 110 miles an hour. >> what i'm told is that this storm in so way will be weakening. there will be and already no signs again that this storm will weaken. and there is always an opportunity for the storm to

strengthen. as you know, this continues to remain a very fluid situation, and we know again that time is not on our side. >> let me bring in colin arnold, the director of the office of homeland security. thanks for being with me. i know how busy you are tonight. >> thank you. >> i would like to start to what you would say to someone like jessica, who you just was interviewed who said i'm more scared of the interstate than i am in my home. unless somebody comes to get me, i'm staying here. >> that's a tough call. everybody has to make a call based on what they believe is the most responsible thing to do. ok. we have given the option if in your situation you think that, especially if you're medically dependent, if you have medical issues, if you think that moving out of here, going out away from the city is a better place for

you and yours, i think that's a wise decision. we also think and we have confidence based on what we're hearing from the site, from the army core of sneers and from the weather service that, you know, our hurricane storm risk production system has been heavily invested in since katrina and this storm, given the circumstances and the timeline we were given and the sheltering in place is an alternative but if you're going to do that, you need to be prepared and you need to do it now. you need to be in your homes by midnight. >> how do you prepare for a situation where for weeks or months, that's what they said, some areas of your state could be uninhabitable. >> certainly, it's an issue. my main concern is the damage to the infrastructure. we also have a unique relationship with water in this

city, given that our geography is below sea level. i think that we can -- we can sustain the drainage for the amount of rain that is being projected unless that rain is occurring within a very short time period. but i don't think there's a system designed that can do that. we're going to fight this as best we can. >> what has changed structurally since katrina that makes you more able to handle storms like this? >> i mean, obviously, the investment made by the american taxpayer into the hurricane and risk storm protection system, the flood control structures that are unlike any other structures in the united states and really rooifling some in the world. we have protection that we did not have in 2005, but i would say that people have asked me a lot about august 29th and what it means to me. i was here. this city has changed in its way of being resilient and its way of being prepared. you know, people take this

seriously. we saw people out getting sandbags. we've seen people in the store, getting their 72 hours worth of supplies, the streets are extremely quiet right now. there was a lot of people on the roads moving out. people will always remember august 29th but they'll also take lessons from that, i believe, into the future, including tomorrow. >> one thing we always are warned of as we cover hurricanes, is that there becomes a point where emergency personnel can't go out. if you have stayed or you have not heeded evacuation warnings, they can't come, and i just wonder if you'd like to reiterate that to people who think i don't need to will to some of these warnings because someone will come for me if i need it. >> it's the toughest thing for a first responder to be told not to go help someone, because that's what they're trained to do, but that's exactly what happens. when the winds are sustained at

30, 40 miles an hour, it's not safe to be in a vehicle, it's not safe to be in a fire truck or an ambulance, in particularly, because of the size of those vehicles, that we can't come to you. so there will be a point, and it may be six, eight hours, where it will be very difficult to get to, and people need to remember that. >> colin arnold, thank you and good luck to your team tonight, tomorrow, and the coming days. >> thank you. >> still to come, biden warns another attack on the kabul airport is highly likely, this as u.s. service members remain there on the ground. plus, two high proifl isis targets were killed in a retaliatoriy attack. president biden says it will not be the last. the governor of louisiana says it will be the most powerful storm to hit his state since the 1850s. stay with us.

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international correspond sam in doha, qatar. >> the embassy put out this message to u.s. citizens but more broadly, anyone who might be able to receive the information that they have a clear and present danger, if you like, threat against the passenger terminals at the airport. this follows warnings from the u.s. president and earlier on in the day from the intelligence community more widely. they're saying get away from the airplane. we believe someone is coming to do something very, very bad at the airport. this is the sort of pressure that u.s. forces have been working under, anyway, but it has now narrowed down to a more dangerous, more immediate message coming out from the u.s. embassy, poppy, and this, of course, going on at a time when

they're trying to get people in the airport, mostly by covert means because the gates have been officially closed. there's much fewer people arriving at the airport but still getting out in relatively large numbers. 2,600 in the last reporting period. they're not exactly sure yet of figures. more than a thu british troops have moved. the brits shut down their operation. taliban shooting in the air. all this coming at a time as the u.s. forces draw out the more vulnerable as they pack up and get their personnel and materiel out of there. >> sam kiley, thank you for your reporting in doha.

as the tuesday deadline approaches president biden is claiming isis ksks is not the last. let's go to john harwood. how imminent? do you have a scent sense of how imminent more u.s. strikes could be? >> he couldn't have been more direct. he put out a statement saying his commanders have advised him it is highly likely that there will be another attack in the next 24 to 36 hours. you just heard from sam about the more specific credible threat tonight that's led to an immediate depart from the airport request from the u.s. embassy. now, while this is going on, evacuations have slowed but they haven't stopped. 2,000 in the last 12 hours. according to white house officials, a total of 113,000 since august 14th. that's an astounding number. what we've seen from the president in the last 24 hours since that suicide attack is an

ability to communicate. one is to resolve to complete this mission on tuesday, and the second is determination to hit back on those who hit u.s. forces, took the lives of 13 u.s. troops, injured many others and killed tens of thousands of afghans. here's the president of the united states' statement this afternoon. i said we would go after the group responsible for the attack and we have. this strike will not be the last. we will continue to hunt down any person spinvolved in that heinous attack and make them pay. when anyone seeks to attack our troops, we will respond. that will never be in doubt. bottom line, wie got a very, very tense couple of days ahead of us before that august 31st deadline, if in fact, u.s. troops are able to pack up and leave, complete their mission by then and depart on schedule. >> we hope so. john harlan, thank you very much.

the white house said from 3:00 in the morning to 3:00 this afternoon, 2,000 people were evacuated from kabul. our reporter is at the pentagon for more on the evacuation mission. i think the latest number i oh, ah remeoren was about 350 peopl left in afghanistan. is anyone who want to leave still can? >> they want to get out. that's a key kwavr. >> right. >> there are some who have chosen to stay. there are only three days left of evacuation efforts if the u.s. doesn't wind up sooner, that would be sunday. it's already sunday morning in afghanistan. monday and tuesday. as sam pointed out, this may evolve to covert operations going out beyond kabul to bring american citizens to the airport where it's the evacuation point. i've been tracking flights on web tracking and you can see the

c-17 on the ground at kabul airport, one that arrived, as well as two dharp in the air, sbu the troop withdrawal that must scale up to get forces and equipment. is some equipment going to be destroyed? the pentagon said that's very much a possibly. there was as many as 18,000 u.s. troops at the airport. we know some have left. that was "a few days ago. the pentagon isn't expected to give an update because security is key and they're not about to broadcast how many troops are left there, given what's a very dangerous environment around the airport. >> given what just happened to them. thank you very much for the reporting. >> on that note, the families of 13 americans serving in afghanistan are suffering deeply. they are mourning the loss of their loved one killed in the kabul airport attack.

they were sons, daughters, they were brothers and sisters, and they were all so young, all of them putting their lives on the line to save the lives of others, leaving behind a legacy of self-lessness. tonight we learned their names and we lesbian refresh who they were in and out of uniform. marine lance corporal riley mccallum was just 20 years old. he was from jackson, wyoming. he was going to become a dad for the first time in a matter of weeks. he wanted to be a marine his whole life. even as a toddler in diapers he carried around a rifle. his father says he was a beautiful soul, tough as nails with the heart of gold, someone who could not stand injustice, someone who would stand up for those bullied in his class. corporal wanted to be a lineman, his family says the 23-year-old

was an animal lover with a soft spot in his heart for dogs. he was just 22. according to his parents he was saying goodbye, his mom rachel told him to be safe and he said, don't worry, mom, my guys got me. they won't let anything happen to me. he's survived by his parents and 12 brothers and sisters. hunter lopez grew up in southern california. both of his parents worked for the rifside sheriff's department. lopez reportedly planned on following in his parents' footsteps and becoming a riverside sheriff deputy after he got home. marine lance corporal jared smith was 20 years old. his father says his whole world was if marine corps. his dead said he was particularly close to his 9-year-old sperm needs sister

who, quote, worshipped the ground he walked on. six days before the attack that took her life, this photo was posted that was taken from her instagram account. there she is holding a little baby and her caption. "i love my job." staff sergeant darren hoover of salt lake city utah. he went by his middle name, taylor. his father told cnn he rebelled him as the best son two parents could ever ask for, someone who always stepped up to defend the little guy. his sister said i'd give anything to speak with him one more time. these are the other service members who lost their lives. as we wait to learn more about them -- and we will share more about them with you as soon as we know more.

25-year-old marine sergeant picharda, 20-year-old lance corporal david espinosa texas. dill lon ramano. 20-year-old marine corps lance corporal kareem nikui. 23-year-old army staff sergeant ryan knaus of tp and finally 22-year-old marine corps humberto sanchez of logansport, indiana. they were all so young. we remember them. we honor them and we grieve with their families tonight. i'm so glad you're ok, sgt. houston. this is sam with usaa. do you see the tow truck? yes, thank you, that was fast. sgt. houston never expected this to happen. or that her r grandpa's dog tas would be left behind.

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can your internet do that? back o to our continuing coverage of hurricane ida which is gaining strength by the hour. the governor of louisiana warns ida will be one of the strongest storms to hit anywhere in the state going back to the 1870s. the national weather service says this storm could make some places in southeast louisiana uninhabitable for weeks, even months. tom joins us. tom, what is the forecast, and also can you explain how that

could be possible, weeks or mobs of places made uninhabitable because of the storm? >> if we get 130-mile-per-hour winds, those are just the sustained winds, and then throw in the gusts. we're talking roofs grown off we could be without power for weeks. we're not even talking about all the debris from inundation. now, we're going to see this landfall as a hurricane. that means a four of the last five hurricanes in the u.s. have hit louisiana. this is also most likely as expected is going to be a major hurricane once it gets to category 3. the last two major hurricanes, where else, louisiana. we had laura and stayeda. together, $120 billion in economic losses. this is going to be a multi-multi-billion disaster. we just want everybody safe. i hope they've left the south in

plaquemines parish. i'm concerned about grand isle. some of the warmest water on our planet, unled fuel to the highest octane that you can get. sometimes these smaller compact storms can provide more of a punch than some of the larger ones but we're going to watch this wind profile. at the 11:00 p.m. advisory we'll be able to share the track. but that puts the strongest winds on the eastern flank for areas such as new orleans up to baton rouge. let's hope on the western side, good hundred miles per hour, it stays away from lake charles, so many vulnerable homes with the tarp still on thousands of homes and people still in fema trailers. into areas of tp we could still have a tropical storm and it makes its way over west-central tennessee. we don't want any flooding there. that's west of nashville. tornado watches most likely will be posted by morning.

we'll have much more coming up in the next half-hour. poppy. >> let me bring in jennifer pippa, the vice president of disaster programming for the american red cross. thank you so much for being here tonight and more so for what your teams are doing right now to help prepare. what is your key message to anyone in the path of this storm tonight? >> the key mem is if your local officials have told you to evacuate,s you should be evacuating, the window for leaving safely and getting to a place where you can ride out the storm in a safe and secure environment is closing quickly, so if you choose to evacuate, call 211, go to redcross.org, or download our app and call, seek refuge. bring your pillow. your blanket. some toys for your children. but take care of your pet, you're bringing your medication

and important documentation along with that. evacuate now and don't wait any longer. >> you were active in the red across aid and assistance in the week of katrina. it is tragedy iron any that this storm is hitting on the 16th anniversary of katrina, which is tomorrow. what are the lessons learned from that? because of the frush, it's better able to handle a storm like this. what are some of the lessons? >> i think with some of the complexities we saw with katrina. when you make sure people are taken care of, that's a massive undertaking and we spent the last 16 years learning every single time how we respond, how we can do something better or quicker, how we work in collaboration with local and government partners and we've learned this is a whole community that has to respond. the red cross plays a critical role, but so does everybody else.

>> the warning from the national weather service is what really struck me most tonight, i think that is, and they said it's because you've got up to 15 feet of storm surge, up to 150-mile-per-hour winds projected. there are parts of the eastern parts of the state that they say could be uninhappen tabl for weeks, maybe months, so if that turns out to be the case, let's hope it's not, but that means the work of the red cross is going to persist here for a long time after this rm to. >> absolutely, poppy. unfortunately, it's something we have experience with. even with hurricane laura last year. we kept folks in shelters for months, because it wasn't safe to return. there isn't an infrastructure to go back to. so we know already we're going to be there for the next three to six months. making sure that communities are being taken care of. >> any final messages to anyone listening tonight? i know we've already heard from people in the state really torn,

do i stay in my house, do i go on the interstate, i'm nervous to leave, what do i do? >> yeah. i think if you can evacuate, do so. if you captain, there's some important things. use flash light not candles. we see -- do not bring in outdoor cooking appliances. do not bring in grills or heaters. secure them during the storm but move them out to your driveway to cook. people bring items in and it's quite dangerous. if you do evacuate, wait till the officials tell you it's safe to come back. there's powerlines down. there will be sewage and floodwaters. it is not safe to return until the local officials tell you it is. >> thanks so much. >> thanks. >> we are following significant breaking news tonight out of afghanistan. a security alert just issued at the kabul airport. biden continuing to be preefd tonight. what will this mean for those final few hundred americans who

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the u.s. embassy has issued a security alert just moments ago for the kabul airport, quote, due to a specific credible threat at multiple

areas. they have told americans to leave the kabul airport immediately. the president tonight again being briefed on the developments in afghanistan. the white house posted this photo of the president's national security team briefing him on afghanistan earlier today. officials say he's receiving regular briefings on the mission. president biden brings the situation continues to be extremely dangerous and the threat of terror attacks remains high. our commanders inform me that a attack is highly likely in the next 24 to 36 hours. let me bring in retired lieutenant general mark heartling. good evening. thank you for being here. general, so couple what the president said, highly likely there's an attack on the kabul airport, with what the u.s. embassy in kabul just said which is essentialry americans get out, there is a, quote, specific credible threat.

how do you ham that on the ground when all of those americans and afghan allies are desperate to get out. now they're being told to leave. and our troops are there trying to facilitate the evacuation. >> it is especially in the final phases of what is being conducted, the nonkpatant operation, what we're probably seeing -- i'm going to guess on this because i've had this experience many times -- is after the strike last night, a lot of chatter came up within the isis-k network, and because of that chatter, whether it was signals intelligence that picked it up or satellite intelligence, you could see the movement around after that planner had been struck with the uav targeting, that others are thinking we've got to get the americans before they get out. we got to execute a toll against them. but right now what you're

talking an is there's limbed -- there are limited numbers of evacuees going into the airport. that's what happens at this phase of the operation. because we're reducing the number of evacuees, the afghans, the american citizens and we're increasing the outside flow of military equipment and the military to end the neo by the 31st of august. you're going to see that probably change again tomorrow where it's almost going to be almost exclusively military outside flow and even that has some really dangerous situations involved, because you're getting -- you know, you're transporting the military out and at the same time trying to secure the airfield. so while there won't be the crush to the gates, because i'm -- i would bet the gates are all closed right now -- >> yeah. they are -- >> -- special entries to buses. a terrorist attack could go against those buses bringing in

evacuees as well, if they get intelligence of when they're moving and where they're coming in, so this is certainly the most dangerous time of this evacuation. i've been saying that from the beginning. the last three days are the toughest time of any kind of neo operation. >> we saw overnight for the first time the first test of what president biden is calling this new over the horizon strategy and capability, which is we're getting off the ground and we're going to attack those like isis-k, who claimed responsibility for the attack on our troops there from the air with drones, with amenrmed missiles. how good can that be in preventing afghanistan from becoming a breeding ground for terrorists when you don't have the intelligence on the ground anymore? >> well, there will still be some intelligence on the ground. i won't talk about where that is -- >> right.

>> -- or how it's operating. certainly there are going to be some human intelligence continuing to work the ground in afghanistan. additionally, though, you have the overhead platforms, the satellites, the airplanes, the kinds of things that search for targets and listen to signals that come about. but make no mistake about it. the over the horizon capability is going to be limbed against key targets. it -- you know, it's not something that you can mass 20 attacks a day or even 20 attacks a day. you're going to have to look for the key targets, like a planner, like a leader, like a fm network kingpin, something like that. but you know, when you're talking about over the horizon, it just takes looking at a map of afghanistan, seeing the countries around it, russia, china, iran, uzbekistan, tajikistan, the gulf of oman. it's tough to get any kind of

overhead platform. that's what makes the over the horizon cape plilt very difficult. >> what's striking to me and i think a lot of people is that isis-k is an enemy of the united states, obviously, but also the taliban. >> yeah. >> does this present a scenario where the u.s. and the taliban coordinate against isis-k and how does that work? >> that's the key question now. it's not just isis-k. there's ttp, islamic gentlemen had, there's all sorts of terrorist gangs, if you will, throughout georgia, all battling not only the taliban but also some of the local warlords who are also battling the taliban, so it is just a star wars bar scene with a lot of people wanting o fight each other. will we establish some kind of diplomatic effort with the taliban if i don't see that happening yet. but i certainly see the potential for gaining intelligence through the taliban

or agents of the taliban. it's too complex to talk about how that might work, but i think some of the engame times and the cooperation we've had with the taliban at the gates could lead, could lead, i'm not saying it should or irt will, but could lead to increase dynamics of cooperation. >> thank you for your expertise, especially on a night like this. >> yeah. thank you, poppy. >> ahead, a life or death situation in parts of the south. hospitals already pushing capacity limits from treating covid patients. now bracing for a storm that could cut critical life support from some. we'll talk about it next.

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mississippi is also seeing potentially deadly threats on two frons tonight from a possible category 4 hurricane on the outside and from covid-19 on the inside. mississippi is one of the least vaccinated states and you look at the total population and the raging delta variant is keeping its hospitals full, too full. hospitalizations are hitsing new highs. just a few icu beds left in the state, and now another shortage. the stress of the deadly

pandemic have driven many nurses to quit. our erica hill introduces us to an icu nurse who resigned, only to go right back into the battle. >> reporter: in ocean springs, mississippi. the icu is full. every patient here battling covid. every one of them on a ventilator. 15 miles east, it's the same story. the nursing staff at a breaking point. >> i come in here and it's war. it's sometimes chaos. >> just 38% of mississippi's population is fully vaccinated. along the gulf coast it's even worse, hovering around 30%, pushing new cases and hospitalizations higher. officials warn there aren't enough beds but on the front lines, the focus isn't space. it's staff. >> there's not a bed shortage.

there's a nursing shortage. >> we have had situations in here with covid with people this critical where two people start to go bad at once. you have to decide which room you run to. it's a hard decision to make. >> the stress of those decisions of the growing number of young covid patients and preventable death put nikole to a breaking point earlier this month. >> you made the decision to resign. why? >> because it feels like we're walting a losing battle. >> yet a week after that, she was still in the icu. >> i realizeds a i was saying goodbye to these nurses here that i coon leave them in the middle of this. >> nikole is cutting back her hours, but for now her resignation is on hold. >> that's where a nurse's heart comes in. you don't want to see your

co-workers suffer as much as you don't want to see your patient suffer. >> one nurse choosing to stay isn't enough. >> you got everything you need? >> mississippi that is at least 2,000 fewer nurses than it did at the beginning of the year. >> it looks heroic. that's not what it is. it's sweaty and hard and chaotic and bloody. >> i didn't know what burnout meant as a nurse until i hit covid. >> melissa davis has worked in the icu for 17 years. it's never been this bad. >> i have seen a turnover in nurses i never thought would have turned over because they can't take it no more. >> do you feel that you're close to a breaking point? >> i think we're already broke. >> burnout, stress, grueling hours. there are multiple reasons career nurses are choosing to leave. >> we've been seeing. it probably hit a peak recently. we had over 120 nursing

vacancies open right now. >> when they do, that experience is also lost. >> it takes years of training to get to where you can actually take care of a covid patient. this is nothing like we've seen before. >> the head of the hospital system is urging the state to use some more its $1.8 billion in covid relief funding for retention bonuses. >> we want to give them incentives to stay and continue to be a nurse. >> i think every little bit help. will it fix the problem? it's not about the money at this point. it's ability i need to recharge my battery. >> that chance too recharge getting increasingly difficult to find. >> it's hard to see a 34-year-old, the family, not make it. you can't describe that to have

friends call you to stand that. it's the only way we get through this is because we have each other. >> what a story. that was our own erica hill reporting. earlier this week governor tate receives announced a thousand person el would be coming to mississippi to help. the state has committed 59 nurses and 18 respiratory therapists to three hospitals there on 60-day contracts. hurricane ida getting stronger as it moves closer to the louisiana coast. people across the area evacuating ahead of this storm. we'll have the details next.

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i'm poppy harlow in new york. glad you're with us tonight. a storm potentially of historic proportion right now, hurricane ida rapidly intensifying in the gulf, expected to slam into the louisiana coastline tomorrow as an extremely dangerous category 4 hurricane, and this comes 16 years to the day hurricane katrina made landfall there. john bel edwards says ida could be one of the strongest hurricanes to hit that state since at least the