Hurricane Ida Aftermath

“We have a lot of work ahead of us and no one is under the illusion that this is going to be a short process,” Gov. John Bel Edwards said as the cleanup and rebuilding began across the soggy region in the oppressive late-summer heat.

Officials in New Orleans have announced seven places where people can get a meal and sit in air conditioning. Likewise, 70 transit buses served as cooling stations, and drive-thru food, water, and ice distribution points will be set up by Wednesday, according to Mayor LaToya Cantrell. State officials are also working on setting up distribution centers in other areas.

Ida slammed the electric grid on Sunday with its 150 mph (240 kph) winds, knocking out thousands of miles of power lines and hundreds of substations and leaving more than a million homes and businesses without electricity in Louisiana and Southern Mississippi. An estimated 25,000 utility workers have worked to restore power, but officials are predicting it will take weeks.

The Mississippi Urban League is working on efforts to provide disaster relief to the victims of Hurricane Ida. As a first step, the Mississippi Urban League will partner with organizations to provide assistance to individuals who were affected by the storm, and we will keep track of this information to provide more regular updates to communities.

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Deslatte reported from Thibodaux, Louisiana. Associated Press writers Janet McConnaughey, Rebecca Santana and Stacey Plaisance in New Orleans; Jay Reeves in Houma, Louisiana; Alina Hartounian in Scottsdale, Arizona; Travis Loller in Nashville, Tennessee; Sudhin Thanawala in Atlanta; Jeff Martin in Marietta, Georgia; and Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina, contributed to this report. Video Courtesty: NBC News ® | YouTube.