Congratulations to NWS/LIX for handling a somewhat misbehaving Francine!
Francine slowed a bit after landfall and shifted a little closer to NOLA. The slower speed helped create bigger rainfall numbers than were expected at mid-day on Wednesday … kept some big winds in the area a little longer.
Peak wind gust summary table is courtesy of the great folks at NWS/LIX (NWS New Orleans/Baton Rouge). Remember, these are based primarily on automated platforms as available that (1) reported reasonable observations and (2) survived the storm and maintained communications. The network of sites is limited … and certainly the regional pattern of the storm likely produced high gusts in many more communities than noted here.
The rains have exited SE Louisiana and the winds continue to subside. Assessment, recovery and clean-up can begin in earnest by daybreak. (Prelim rainfall maps courtesy of MesoWest … data are automated and not QC’d: some of the lower values are probably in error.)
Francine’s large eyewall … and the persistence of that northern sections of the eyewall made for more damage and a bigger hurricane and tropical-storm footprint than was expected.
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