Hurricane Francine made landfall near Morgan City on Wednesday evening and moved across Louisiana, causing widespread flooding in New Orleans and Jefferson Parish.

The Category 2 hurricane weakened to a tropical storm over land and battered the metropolitan areas of New Orleans and Baton Rouge for hours, drenching southeastern Louisiana in rain.

As of 5 a.m. on Thursday, more than 388,000 residents in more than 20 parishes were without power.

In Jefferson Parish, canals filled and overflowed onto roads in Metairie, and authorities urged residents to stay indoors and off the roads.

The first damage reports are starting to flow in

Preliminary damage reports from the National Weather Service indicate that Hurricane Francine caused widespread flooding in several parishes.

According to reports from Lafourche parish, emergency services rescued at least 26 people from floodwaters in the Thibodaux area.

St. Charles Parish reported that 185 buildings on the east bank and 76 on the west bank had some degree of flooding. St. Tammany reported that one of its fire stations was flooded and that water on the roads threatened homes.

A building was reportedly blown down on Park Avenue in Houma. Trees were reported to have fallen on two trailers in Livingston Parish. In Assumption Parish, downed power lines blocked Louisiana Highway 1 in Napoleonville.

A more complete picture of the damage in southeastern Louisiana will not be clear until residents and officials can assess properties and roads during the disaster when conditions are safe.

–06:45 am

Several roads blocked by debris and downed power lines

“Numerous roads” are blocked by downed trees and power lines, debris and water on the roads, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development said in a social post.

Crews were expected to begin grading the road and clearing the area once conditions were safe. DOTD asked people not to travel while those grading and cleanup efforts were underway.

If people must drive, DOTD advises using extreme caution, not driving through standing water or over debris such as downed power lines, leaving extra space between vehicles, and treating non-functioning traffic lights as four-way stops.

You can check road conditions at www.511la.org.

–06:15 am

Louisiana continues to be battered by flooding and power outages as Francine leaves state

More than 388,000 people in more than 20 parishes in southeastern Louisiana were without power Thursday morning as Tropical Storm Francine moved northward out of the state.

The widespread flooding in New Orleans and the surrounding area had not yet subsided on Thursday morning.

According to a release from the National Hurricane Center in Miami, the center of the storm was located north of Franklinton, Louisiana, about 60 miles (96 kilometers) north of New Orleans at 4 a.m.

Francine was moving toward the north-northeast and had maximum sustained winds of about 45 mph (72 km/h), with higher gusts.

A storm surge warning remained in effect for Grand Isle up to the Mississippi-Alabama border, Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Maurepas.

According to the NHC, waves generated by Francine will continue through Thursday and impact much of the northern Gulf Coast, causing life-threatening surf and rip currents.

–05:30 am