stay with fox news chabl channel for the latest on hurricane isaac. good night from tampa bay. >> this is a fox news weather alert. hello, from new york, we are tracking hurricane isaac. it's a big one and it is moving inland at this hour. >> it's a mean one, too. would we be up at 1:00 in the morning fnot? >> we would not. >> we have to make sure you have all the information you need. we want to you stay safe. we will begin our live, continuous coverage with a look at the massive storm. >> right now, isaac spans close to 200 miles. pretty big. the national weather service reporting that winds could reach 100 miles per hour. and this is the scene in the

french quarter of new orleans right now. many there are trying to heed the advice to get out of the city. a little 90 miles from new orleans, biloxi, mississippi, where there is a curfew until 7:00 a.m. roads have been flooding there. >> we have been here until 5:00 a.m., making sure that we track the storm. new orleans, of course, taking a direct hit. it is a little erie that it's 7 years -- >> to the day. hit new orleans in 20 feet of water in some spots. it's the real test to see whether or not the upgraded and new levees can actually withstand this hurricane system that took after hurricane katrina. >> we begin our live coverage on canal street in new orleans t. looks vacant there. >> reporter: yeah, gregg, and jamie. you talk about the levy system.

some $11 billion of improvements have been made to create new levees, new flood protection zones, things like that. we are happy to report at this hour that there are no real incidents that we are hearing of of any breaches or anything like that. but we have a long way to go. it's very interesting because we are in a little bit of a lull right now. you talk about how massive this storm is. some 200 miles from its center. so you will get hit with a big downpour. and then you will have very extreme wind and then it will essentially die down and that is kind of what we are experiencing right now. if you look at canal street, the palm trees are not really moving. just as i say that, here we come with another squall line. that's what is happening. when you look at the map, you can see the hurricane and the bands swirling. and as those bands continue

making landfall and this continues to churn inland, you have the extreme weather we are experiencing. you can literally now see the rain pouring t. wasn't just 30 seconds ago when we started talking to you. but you talk about things being a little bit dederted. if you -- deserted. normally, at this hour, new orleans, a lot of people out and about, not so much. a lot of places are boarded up. a lot of people heeding the warnings, although there were no mandatory evacuations in the crescent city. it was more of a voluntaria basis. a lot of people said they were going to get out and not ride this storm out. the only mandatory evacuations were a handful of the lower lying parishes, like st. bernard and also in clackman's parish, where we had water spilling over a levy, but no breaches. isaac is really the true test

for all of the improvements and everything that we have been, you know, we have been hearing about, since hurricane katrina, 7 years ago. today, guys. >> you know, casey, i know you have been out and about talking to a lot of folks there. what are they telling you? what's their reaction to this? >> well, it's mixed. you know, you talk about 7 years from katrina, although, you know, it may seem like a long time for folks like you and i, for people who lived here and people who rode this storm out and lived the nightmare, it feels like it was yesterday. and so when you talk to some people, they say, each with a strong category 1, like isaac is, they were not going to take any chances and they were going to go further inland, places like texas to stay with relatives and they were going to come back when the all clear was given. on the other hand, you talk to some people who -- who believe that -- that they were going to ride this out. and that they -- that they just wanted to essentially stay in

place, they were going to board up. they were going to sandbag and do what they could to defend their property and not have to flee the city. >> casey, it has to be really strange to be standing where you are right now. talk to us about that. >> reporter: yeah, it's a little eerie because it's only 1:00 in the morning here, normally at this time of night, people would be out and b. they would be going from bar to bar. they would be going to the restaurants that are open, pretty much 24 hours a day. so as you can see here, there is really no vehicles out on the roads, there is no pedestrians milling about. the only people really out are members of the press covering the storm. occasionally, we will see a new orleans police officer drive up canal street here. and then, you will also see some utility workers as l. the latest report from the energy company, a little more than 100,000 people in the region are without power. but you know what is really

interesting, when you look at the map, you see that we still have an awfully long way to go. it has been raining for the better part of the day. but we still have rains for 24 even 34 hours, 36 hours, some of the forecasters are predicting because, basically, once isaac is making landfall, it's stalling out a bit and it's going very, very slow. only moving along to the northwest at 8 miles per hour, according to the latest projections we have seen from the national hurricane center. that's extremely slow, giving it plenty of time to dump rain. and that is going to cause the flooding issues that so many are concerned about. >> casey, live on canal street. thanks very much. >> before we leave the subject of new orleans, a couple of things crossing the wire, one nuclear plant remains closed there t. may look like the rain is not as strong as you would expect in a category 1. but as casey said, the storm is moving very slowly and expected

to continue to downpower for a long time. a lot of people are concerned about pets and animals. i was happy to read that the spca of louisiana have sent hundreds of dogs and cats to texas for adoption to get them out of the way. they are offering a 50% discount if you adopt a pet that was part of the storm early on. and united way has re-established their disaster fund that was set up after the b.p. oil spill now for more donations, so the people who are going to be in need, you know, more people die from flooding than they do from the actual storm. so this is an event that will continue for several days to come. do what you can to help. we will have the red cross and the salvation army talking to us. we will give you lots of ways to help. let's go to alabama. taking only a glancing blow from hurricane isaac so far. but that's not to say that the folks are out of the storm yet. at this hour, isaac is threatening the coast with high

winds, torrential rain, pounding surf, hundreds will be spending the night at emergency shelters. there's our phil keating, holding on in theodore, alabama. phil, it looks like you are getting pretty hammered. >> reporter: jamie, if you love strong winds and heavy rain for 24 to 36 hour, come down to mobile bay in the gulf of mexico. it is churning right now. the forecast for storm surge here the next day or so, 4 to 8 feet, the most noticeable in the morning around 11:00 a.m., depending on the time or the minutes before or after, depending on the coast where you are, that's high tide tomorrow. that's where we can see a lot of the big storm surge. of course, potential flooding is also a tornado watch in effect for much of the coastal region and the wind bands and rain bands stretch far away from the center, which is obviously very close, getting closer to new

orleans right now. out in the gulf of mexico, many oil rigs have -- [inaudible] -- mass production is down. while the maximum sustained winds observed by the national hurricane center so far are most likely, this will be the peak because it goes into land, it is going to slowly decrease in speed, 80 miles per hour, the strongest gusts recorded so far today, out on an oil rig at 106 miles per hour. and these gusts are really getting strong here, an hour ago. this is definitely more intense than it was then. anywhere from 7 to 14 inches of rain are expected. on the way west, morgan city, louisiana, to all the way east, the florida panhandle, pensacola, out of the hurricane warning area. however they do remain in the tropical storm warning area. and very strong, hurricane and tropical storm winds will be

reaching far and wide because the hurricane hunters are flying around the planes, going in and out, zig-zagging through the hurricane. i was watching a report from them about an hour ago. they said, each 100 miles from the center, they were still seeing roughly the same amount of speed, only a difference of 80 miles per hour at the center, to 65, maybe 70. that far out. so it's going to be a lot of rain here in alabama. mobile county in particular, most likely, 10 inches total. as far as flooding goes, obviously, that's a major, major concern because this is a low-level, category 1 hurricane. you don't get to category 2 until you have wind speeds of 96 miles per hour. but this is a slow mover, as casey was just talking about. and it's going to produce a lot of rain over a lot of time and so as daylight turns up tomorrow. we could see the first sign of

serious flooding, back to you. >> we want you to stay safe. we'll check back with you. thank you so much for braving the lemes. our properties are up and down the coast. thanks, phil. >> our team meteorologists are tracking the hiewsh. let's go to our chief meteorologist. rick? >> take a look, where phil was, winds gusting to 45 miles per hour, so that's why his hair's getting pushed around and he's getting rushed around. 65-mile-per-hour gusts in new orleans. 70 miles south of new orleans. it is right around the grind isle area. made a landfall, a number of hours ago, right here across the mouth of the mississippi river nthat piece of land that sticks out there. plaquaman's parish and it will come on shore at grand isle. very heavy rain, the yellow and the red, that's the heaviest of

the rain. casey was saying it was calm, where you have the yellows and reds and it's calm and another batch about to hammer new orleans. that will be the strongest winds they have seen so far. take a look at the future radar and wind speed. 69 miles per hour is what they will have within the next hour or two. but this is what's going to continue with us. wind 60s to 70s, all night long, we are going into the afternoon. we are dealing with that. the very heavy rainfall. tomorrow night at around this time, winds still almost 60 miles per hour. so think of that, 24 hours at least, winds pushing 60 miles per hour and the very heavy rain, that's why we have this bull's-eye, around 20 inches of rain, right here from new orleans, towards baton rouge. once this pulls inland, tell pull up into the north. this is where we are going to see more inland flooding, a good-news story that we have so much drought across the plains. tell help just a little bit.

but there will be 3 to 4 inches, 5 inches in spots and causing flooding, all the way towards the great lakes, chicago, indianapolis, maybe a little bit of rain towards detroit and ohio. so this will have big impacks for a lot of people. right now, guys, obviously, new orleans, under the gun for the next 24 hours. >> absolutely. but that's amazing, all the way up to michigan, if you can believe it. we'll check back with you. thanks very much. >> rick, grab the red bull. you will be with us all night. >> all night. >> our team coverage of hurricane isaac is just getting started. we are live in new orleans, across the gulf coast, as the storm progresses and rages. >> and this is a big storm it's a slow storm as rick mentioned, a lot of rain and a storm surge that will put new orleans, you know, the improved levees to the test. we will see. >> yes. ry and abigail higgins had...

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tiny needle, big protection. ♪ >> the weather is definitely extreme. hurricane isaac is slamming the louisiana gulf coast right now. the state is asking the federal government for aid. president obama design signed declarations for the state, as well as mississippi. jeff landry's representing much of southeastern louisiana in congress. he is joining us on the phobe. i'm sure, batoning down the hatches where he is. congressman, thanks for joining us. >> you are welcome. good bng with you, jamie. >> you have been through this before. you know, 7 years ago to the day, for katrina. it's a little ear tow me that --eery to to me, that the storm doesn't seem to be packing that punch. but have folks heeded the call? are you getting the help you need. >> i think we are.

the district we represent has had a rough 10 years with four major hurricanes, an oil spill and hurricane isaac. our local officials and first responders are great. they have had a lot of real life experience on this. a lot of people have heeded the call. i think it's just a matter of getting through this calamity and assessing the damage. >> let's talk about getting through t. congressman, i understand jure governor, bobby jindal, sent a letter to president obama saying that the feds are not giving the state the help that they need? >> well, i think what the governor's been asking for and the fact that during major hurricanes, the federal government has helped in the aftermath and also in the preparation as well. i am pretty sure that the letter that went to the president was saying, look, the state of louisiana will be impacted, both in preparation and in thereafter

and we want to make sure that the federal government is there, standing by, willing and able to help us get through this claka lammity. >> when hurricane katrina, category 3, new orleans was under, in some spots, 20 feet of water. i remember being there, six months and even a year later, when many of the parishes looked exactly the same as they did after the storm. do we have it better this time? will the federal government and any. agencies do a better job? >> well, i would hope so. i would think that after that type of calamity, we have assessed t. i know that new orleans, the corps of engineers has been busy. i am concerned about a portion in st. charles, where we haven't been able to complete the west bank levy. that parish has two major refineries and the shell refinery and a nuclear plant. all three of those facilities are exposed because of the lack of finishing that levy off. so i am hopeful we can get

through this and get that levy completed. >> a lot of people watch weather coverage like this, even in the middle of the night because they like to watch weather. but really, even if you are not in this area, this is a storm that could affect all of us. let me just start with gas prices. food prices. power prices. whap do you think about the platforms that are out there right now and the ability to continue to provide fuel that we will need, the rest of us, after this storm. how's it looking? >> well, first of all, we need to recognize that probably 90% of the oil production in the gulf of mexico is shut in. 50% of the natural gas production in the gulf is shut in. two% of the refining capacity is impacking at this time. i think, you know, what you see, jamie, is a weakness in our energy palings here in this country. i mean, it is fact of the matter is fwe could continue to -- to produce domestically oil from other places that are not so

hurricane prone, we wouldn't have these surprises and disruptions during these types of calamities so at then of the day, the country recognizes the importance that louisiana plays national neproviding energy to the rest of the country. and that we in louisiana, support domestic oil production in other places of the country because of the problem we are seeing today. >> yeah. you know, i have seen the platform, not to mention that your idea would creations. stay safe, sir. we really appreciate you taking time at this hour. our best to you, your family and your constituents. thank you. >> thank you so much. >> the force of hurricane isaac is being felt well beyond the coast of louisiana right now. >> yeah, when we were return, we will go live to the capitol of baton rouge and see what precautions are being taken to sheeltd locals there from isaac. we'll be right back. don't go anywhere. >> for areas in the direct path of the storm, there will be

hurricane-force winds lasting from 6 to 10 hours. additionally, the slow movement of the storm means there is a greater chance of heavy rain. the forecast shows there could be between 10 to 16 inches of rain in some of these areas. slow movement, obviously means not only longer duration for the wounds, but the rains. we could see tornadoes both today and tomorrow.

>> isaac is en route to louisiana's capitol city baton rouge. it's about 80 mileless northwest of new orleans. sits on a higher ground than new orleans. but it will get its share of heavy rain and gusty winds. ana, what are the current conditions? >> ray, i have to tell you, it seems that judging from the other correspondent shots that i

have drawn the long straw. but we know it will be short lived. we are getting some high winds here, not incredibly high and some rain off and on, only the loft half hour or so. it has stopped here at the moment. we are live at the department of homeland secury and emergency preparedness center here. it's the central nervous system of operations. we are getting all sorts of updates from emergency management and governor bobby jindal. there are manned tory and voluntary evacuations in place, but of course, life vests have to go on. the people who live here and have decided to choose to ride out the storm have been asked to stay put and really hunker down. they have been boarding up windows and buying batteries and filling sandbags, buying up the essentials, like food and, of course, water. now, governor jindal has urged the federal government to create a full disaster declaration in an effort to be aggressive and

protect residents and their property. president obama has granted a limited disaster declaration, which will not reimburse the expenses that the state and local governments incur as they prepare for hurricane isaac. >> there are certain declarations that fema can make and others require presidential center. it has move from the regional office to the central office. they have the request. they have not yet acted upon it. but they do have the request. >> reporter: we have video from the tip of the boot of the hurricane. it's sitting there. evacuees are being given food in state shelters and red cross. the veterans affairs department is getting ready with shelters and space and vans and buses. some are feeling theery emotions with the seven-year anniversary of hurricane katrina. ironically, isaac expected to hit new orleans about the same time the levees broke on august 29, 2005, causing 80% of the

city to flood and over 1800 people to die. we can tell you, we don't expect to hear any media briefings from emergency management or governor jindal in the overnight hours. but we will keep you updated. back to you. >> ana, thank you very much. >> with new orleans being lashed by a major hurricane, service organizations are helping those in need. joining us now, major william owens from the salvation army. how are you? >> doing fine. good morning. >> you do yoman's work. tonight, you are out in force. how many people do you have working from the salvation army? >> that would be hard to determine because they are all staged and ready to do what they need to do once the weather cooperates with us. >> are you able to get to the areas that you need? or are there road blockages at this time? >> we are playing the wait-and-see game because many

places have been blocked off by the authorities, of course. >> what are your plans? >> well, we have several places that are staged. we have disaster why units stagn baton rouge and gulfport, mississippi, waiting for the opportunity so we can take our disaster unit and serving those who have been in harm's way with this hurricane. >> i have been to way too many disasters and i have seen the work dhiew. i have to ask thuquestion because -- you this question because woo these are tough type times. are people supporting the salvation army with the donations, the way you need them to to provide meals and kits and counseling and assistance? >> our donors have been very supportive of us, each time we have been involved in a disaster. we thank them. we are able to extend what they want done for the people by their donations. >> tell me the services you think they will need, right now, after this hurricane? >> well, we have certain things that are set up.

we have 40,000-plus water units, set aside to help the people and we have 75,000 entree, ready t be served to them. cleaning kits that are ready to go. we are staging area, waiting for those to help happen. we have been helping the d.o.t. with meals and water as well. >> i know you do that. i know they deserve it. you have to take your hat off to the first responders as l. i saw video earlier of firefighters doing their shopping at home depot and the grocery stores. you know, sometimes they have to leave their families behind to take care of others. do you the same, don't you? >> yes, we do. >> what made you and others that become volunteers for the salvation army do what do you? >> i think it's a calling that i do it, that's the reason do i what i do. >> major owens, gregg jarrett, what can we do to help you? >> we are asking people, if they are interested in helping us financially, that they are able

to do so through several venue, visit us at www.salvationarmy.org, or call 1-00 number or text storm 8,000 888. >> that's through text. >> how many days do you think you will be on the job? >> with all the problems that went through with katrina. we were there for a long time. we will be here until the job gets done, however long it takes. we don't know at this time. >> all right, major owen, thank you so much for helping and doing what you do. >> i appreciate it. >> major owens. so many others like him who, devote their time and energies. it's such wonderful people. >> you know what is interesting? when you are at these storms, or even after 9/11, you see the trucks pull up, the red cross and the salvation army. on the outside of the salvation

army truck, you could be in new york and it will say cleveland, ohio. these folks drive in through the storms from all over our country to help out. it's quite an effort. anything you can do for the red cross, we'll be talking to them in these couple of hours and the salvation army. please do. they are going on need help. >> they certainly are. >> you are watching live coverage of hurricane isaac. the category 1 storm making landfall tuesday evening in southeastern louisiana. >> isaac's huge. nearly 200 miles across -- can you imagine isn't winds on the outer banks of the storm are as strong as those at the eye, watches and warnings, up and down the gulf coast at this hour. >> new orleans taking a direct hit. folks hunkering down there. lots of businesses, already boarded up. up to 20 inches of rain is possible before all of this is over. >> we know flooding can cause a lot of problems and a lot of deaths.

other areas long the gulf coast, feeling isaac's reach. this is a scene in biloxi, mississippi, where the storm surge is the real threat. keep it right here for the very latest. grerks also, the major -- gregg, also, the major concern? >> really, how quickly hurricane isaac will be moving inland. our team of meteorologists tracking hurricane isaac. rick -- as we always turn to him in momings of need. rick, what's the latest? >> you know what? maybe a slight shift to what we have been saying, a little bit in the past. the official path from the national hurricane center move its slightly to the west. i'll show you, you have winds gusting to 64 miles per hour in new orleans. towards 7:00 in the morning, around 70 miles per hour. but the storm, instead of moving to the northwest, according to this one model tpulls it further to the west, not northwest, but

to the west. go forward to 5:00 p.m. tomorrow night, we are still here, hugging the coast. go forward to around 1:00 a.m. tomorrow, 24 hours, guys, we are right here, still off the shore. lafayette, louisiana, winds gusting to 90 miles per hour. so we are talking 24 hours from now,ats least according to this one model, instead of pulling up to the northwest, staying here and hugging the coastline, all the oil refineries and the platforms that are right here, a lot of them, obviously, closed down. but that will continue to cause problems. because it will stay over water, won't necessarily weakeb very much. if it does go more inland that, would be good news because the storm weakens. but that is also a worstst-case scenario for new orleans. if this goes this direction, that helps new orleans a bit. the winds wouldn't be as strong, the rain is going to be there, no matter what. we will be dealing with that for a long time.

go to thursday afternoon, we are still there, in louisiana, winds in monroe, gusting to 60 miles per hour. we have a long road ahead of us from this storm, at least 36 hours for louisiana from now. >> you know how we know that the night is getting long? rick has his jacket on, his tie is tied. by the end of the night or the morning -- the tie's loose, the jacket's off, the sleeves rolled up. stay at it, rick. we need you. thank you. >> we have seen him before... in a sorry state. >> true. >> thanks very much. >> you bet. >> hurricane isaac is pounding new orleans with wind and water. its effects being felt further inland. joining plea from baton rouge, colonel michael edmonson, superintendent of the louisiana state police and the deputy secretary of public safety in the state. colonel, thanks for being with us. give us an update on your status. >> certainly, for a little

while, there was a lot of speculation. keep in mind, we prepare, based on the speculation. this is not a hundred-yard did she. this is a marathon. we know that. we are prepared for that. the expectation and the respect that we have for this storm is something that we are following very, very closely. in south louisiana, including in new orleans, all the police responders and everything have pretty much shelter in place. we are not responding because the winds are so high. so we told the people, stay off the road and stay in your home, be in a sheltered place. we are expecting, like you said, to move a little bit west, move northward, we will be continually planning for that, getting phone calls to people, having to go out at different times, but staying in touch with people and getting the information out. that's the most important thing. and getting the public to understand that, this is going to be here for a while. they have to be prepared for it.

>> superintendent, what kind of phone calls are you getting? >> a lot of phone calls are people that are unknown. what's the wins going to do? we have over 250,000 people without electricity. they are not getting a lot of information if they don't have batteries for radios. they are making phone calls, trying to get information, based on that. that's a lot of it. the traffic on the interstate system and the evacuation routes is light. so people heeded our warnings on that. we were able to clear the traffic out, actually, earlier, earlier today. so that really worked out well, between baton rouge and new orleans and the coast. same thing with the people on grand isle and the mouth of the river, those small community, a lot of people are sheltered in place or they got out. so we know that grand isle's getting hit by in excess of 100-mile-per-hour winds.

we understand there is a lot of damage. we can assess tomorrow in the daylight. it's really still a lot of unknowns right there. we are watching it. we are certainly preparing for the worst, hoping for the best. understand that we are going to be in this for several days. >> all right. colonel edmonson, keep in touch with us, if you would, sir. you know, we are very concerned about your community and want to make sure that we get all the latest information. thank you very much. >> i appreciate that. >> all eyes are on new orleans tonight, i am reading just now, there is a storm surge of as much as 10 feet or more. the national hurricane service saying the storm moving at only 7 miles per hour north. that's very slow and the rain is building. the ability to withstand isaac's storm surge, the first real test of the improved system in the wake of hurricane katrina. casey stegill, live from new

orleans. i am sure there was a lot of talk all day long about whether or not the levees would hold. >> reporter: yeah, jamie. the army corps of engineers has been out and about and inspecting the levees, all of the new flood-control systems put into place over the last 7 years or so. you know, you really talk about the rain and just about 5 minutes ago, it was coming down so strong here in new orleans that we were getting what's known as rain fade on the satellite, where we cannot broadcast out of the truck. we cannot beam the signal to space because of the precipitation. it is really coming down at this point. you can see why some forecasters are projecting up to 20 inches of rain in certain areas. think about how much rain that is. it's a tremendous amount. no doubt, it is going to put the pumps and everything to the test here. by all accounts at this hour, everything is holding up fine. we talked about the army corps of engineers being out.

they're reporting back that no breaches or anything like that have been reported at this point. but we still do have a long way to go when you talk about rick's forecast. i was just listening to him and the potential for how long this is going to linger. you know, when you are talking about rain and heavy winds coming down for 24 hours or so, even longer beyond that, you know, that is really sets you up for potential with problems. i want to give you a live look right now, right down here on canal street. you can see power trucks that are just sitting here. about 100,000 people in this region are without power right now. it's just about 12:35 here, 12:40 in new orleans. one of the reasons why you don't see a lot of vehicles that are out moving about, we are very much in the middle of this storm. it is still really battering us. so it is difficult for the

emergency crews, some of the first responders and the like to actually get out in these conditions, which is one of the reasons why the local officials, the mayor of new orleans, the governor of this state, urging so many people voluntarily evacuate, essentially saying, if you are choosing to ride out the storm, you may be on your own because it's difficult for the emergency crews to even get to you. i want to go to some video that we shot earlier on the shore of lake pontchartrain. we spent most of our day och there on the eastern side of the lake. you can see from this video why we had to get out of there. the waves really crashing ashore there, as those wins were picking up. the water was rising quite quickly. it got dicey for us. we had to retreat and get out thereof and come to this live location because it was really getting bad in terms of flooding. let's go from that video to other flooding video that was

just about 2 miles or so south of lake pontchartrain. water that started rushing over the roadway and this was hours ago. this was really before the hard rains really started falling. so you can see how the roadways are getting to be impassable and some of these lower-lying regions. when we talk about folks living in this region, some did evacuate, others opted to stay like the man you are about to hear from who said he was going to ride the storm out in a shipping container and he was worried about the water levels, hours ago. listen. it's up to 2 1/2 foot now. normally, it would be -- it wouldn't be on land. >> it was coming up very, very quickly. it's hard to say what morning will bring, once the sun rises and people get to see what really has happened in the overnight hours as this rain

continues to fall, yamy. >> casey -- jamie. >> casey, are the lights on on their own or generator? >> they are on on their own. in this part of the city, the power has not gone out, fortunately. we are not far from the french quarter. we are here at canal and bourbon. bourbon street, that's bourbon street -- it is desolate. i mean, normally at this time of night, you would see people walking around and milling about down there. it really is kind ofeery as you look down the famed bourbon street and no one is out. but all the lights are on, not on a generator. it is running on power, when you talk about 100,000 people. not a large number. but if you are one of those people and you are sitting in the dark, it can be extremely difficult and hard to wait out. >> i am seeing 200,000 in other areas up and down the coast. thank you very much, casey.

stay safe there. we appreciate it. >> reporter: you got. >> it over the next several hour, the fate of new orleans can rest on the system of levees and flood gates designed to protect the city from the coastal waters in the mississippi river. since hurricane katrina hit 7 years ago, to the day, folks, we are only a couple of hours shy-- the system has been repaired, modernized at a cost of nearly $1 billion tax dollars. it is not sure at this time whether or not the upgraded 24 pump stations will be able to keep up with the heavy rainfall that isaac might drop. it's a slow-moving storm. right now the national hurricane center saying 7 miles per hour, moving north. big. 200 miles wide. joining me on the phone from new orleans, ken holder, very well known from the army corps of engineers. great to have you here. thank you so much. >> thanks for having us. i know, in the heat of battle, sometimes it's easy to lose focus. it's 14.6 billion overall for

the system. that's -- yeah, 133 miles worth of perimeter protection. i think probably what you are referring to, is $1.1 billion that has to do with the lake warren search barrier. i will run everything i. before you do that, let me ask you specifically because i am glad you brought that up. obviously, one of our writers had written $1 billion. you are right. over $14 billion. hindsight's 20-20. 7 years since katrina made landfall. the information that you had at the time that the army corps of engineers designed the levees, have you learned anything now that you think might have changed what you built? and how it will withstand this storm? >> fiunderstand your question correctly, it's over the 7 years that we have been working on this system. have we learned anything and put the lessons learned into action as we built the system? >> correct.

was it upgraded along the way? >> absolutely. a number of things were done differently than have been done ever. what we did hear a lot of public meetings and loc, where to put stuff. we listened to people. over 500 meetings with the public since katrina. not only did we do that, but engineer standards have changed. subsidence, sea level rise. the corps is the nation's premiere organization for science and engineering. when you take a look at what we did and brought to bear on this issue, i think america can be proud what have got done. >> the west closure complex is a billion-dollar facility with the biggest pumping station, not just in our country -- on the planet from, what i understand. >> yeah. you are absolutely right. it could fill an olympic swimming pool in four seconds. >> is it up and running? >> it -- we won't use that until

tomorrow. the way the system is running, we won't need to not system into use until tomorrow. the ones that are here on the east bank and running here has to do with the outfall canals. during katrina, we didn't have the pump station and it is gates. so what happened is, when we get a storm surge twent right up the canals and into the heart of the city. what we did was put in gates that we can drop, stop a storm surge at lake warren and then city pumps the water into the canal and we pump it back out into the lake warren. so it's made a huge difference. we have taken the fight back out of the heart of the city and put it back where it belongs. the warren search barrier is 13 miles from the city. the pumping station that you mentioned is 20 miles outside of the city. it really, we took the fight away from the population center, as much as we could. >> you know, having toured the levees after katrina myself and walked with the army corps of

enormouses, stayed in touch with you all these years and reading now what is new and different there, for example, the seabrook flood gate complex, $165 million, 54-foot-tall barrier with the gates you mentioned that are 95 feet wide. they weigh 220 tons apiece. if you were considering -- because so many people lift and never returned, out of fear -- would you have total confidence that if this storm had been a category 3, you would be able to protect everybody? >> well, it's a hundred-year level storm. category 3 is one data point on the scale. but it's designed to protect against a hundred-year storm and tell protect against a hundred-year storm. of that, i have no doubt. so if there is an evacuation call, you need to heed that because that means we have worked with our partners, the state and the city and we know other federal partners, we know it will exceed what we would be

able to do with a hundred-year storm. we have not done that this time and worked very closely with everyone. this is personal for us. this is not just professional. we live behind this system just like everybody else. everybody forgets that the corps of engineers employees live behind the system. it's personal to us. >> of course. >> you saw that when you came back and toured. >> sure. >> after hurricane katrina. we have many employee who is lost everything. this time, we had enough money up front to do what we needed to do. first the bush administration and then the obama administration put the commitment into the people of louisiana and the people of new orleans to make this city a safer place to live. >> ken holder, you have put in the commitment as well. we appreciate it. nice to talk to you again. thank you so much. stay safe. >> thank you. we appreciate you. >> or this morning, gregg, as it were. >> hurricane isaac being felt beyond leendz -- beyond new orleans and alabama. when we come back, a full report

on how people there are braving isaac.

>> welcome back, alabama is feeling glancing effects from hurricane isaac. the storm's threatening the coast with high winds, torrential rain and pounding surf. shelter's been set up for happens of folks there. phil keating has the latest from theodore on the coast of alabama. hey, phil. >> reporter: hi, gregg. the rain, the wind, less intense at this moment than it was, say, 45 minutes ago, when we broadcast from here before. but that's how this hurricane is going to go and has been going with band after band after band broken by somewhat calmer

weather in between. as the hurricane now getting really close to downtown new orleans, out here in mobile bay, you can see the effect, driving rain, howling wind and churning mobile basically you can see these two docks? 8 years ago in a hurricane, they were partially destroyed. then they ended up being totally destroyed in hurricane katrina and basically, for the past 7 years to date, all that has remained is pilings. they will survive without a doubt through the this hurricane because this is a category 1, 80-mile-per-hour maximum speed, which will slowly begin dying down. however, the big issue is the slow-moving. it is going to take 44 to 36 hours to move on up the united states. up at this time north here, downtown mobile, 20 miles away, absolute dead tonight, ghost

town. a lot of people evacuated northbound and eastbound. and then a hotel, ran into a family from downtown new orleans, who evacuated to get out of the city for the night. if you go south of here, another 15, 20 miles, dawson island, very popular amongst tourists, not so popular right now. most of them got evacuated because the governor listed all mandatory evacuations today. but those who did stay, they have no power because the power went out. they have to be self-contained because there are no services and there is absolutely no way back to the mainland until after the intensity of the hurricane has already moved on through because the bridge is closed, thank to the high surf coming over. now the storm surge here in alabama special mobile bay, predicted to go 4 to 8 feet at the maximum point of the depth of the hurricane and really

noticeable around tomorrow, 11:00 a.m., once we get the high tide returning. the tide's going out and we have seen a noticeable difference in the water level. but still, according to the forecasters, around the gulf of mexico, going from louisiana, all the way to alabama, the storm surge over the past couple of hours has seen water levels rise about 4 feet higher than they typically would be in a normal day. clearly, this is not a normal day, very wet day. very windy day and it's just beginning. and unfortunately, it is going to be dreary like this all day long. and having covered tropical storm isaac over the week enin key west and up in south florida, well, they just dealt with about 36 hours of everybody just basically staying indoors, staying off the roads and bearing out the band after band after band of strong winds and

rain and now that we are close tort center of what is now a hurricane, well, it is going to be a lot more miserable. it is loud outside, even when we are inside the house that we are using here, as shelter, just howling winds through the walls and the doorways. for everybody who is trying to get to sleep this morning, very challenging, to say the least, back to you. >> you know, you are a veteran of these things. and you are getting pelted out there. talk to us about what it's like, staning in the midst of this thing. >> well, it's obviously not as severe and intense as other hurricanes that we have covered. but, you know, when it comes and goes and the big gusts, we are substantially away, about 100, 130-40 miles away from new orleans. it is less intense the further away you go. but then, there have been times where i have been pushed around. but by no means am i going to be

blown down. since we are standing here on the coastline, the mobile bay, i am not really concerned about flying debris coming up because wind experts will tell you that when you have a hurricane blowing very powerful winds, all the debris, which is more dangerous than the wind, is flying at a speed of 2/3 of the maximum hurricane wind. so if you have a00-mile-per-hour hurricane wind, you have a 65-mile-per-hour two-by-four, you don't want to be caught by that. >> film, thanks very much. we'll be right back. you know what i love about this country?

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