hurricane

During his Friday visit, Biden pledged robust federal assistance to get people back on their feet and said the government already had distributed $100 million directly to individuals in the state in $500 checks.

Hurricane Ida has blasted ashore along the Louisiana coast as one of the most powerful storms ever to hit the U.S., rushing toward New Orleans and one of the nation’s most important industrial corridors.

As the storms approached, homeowners and tourists were leaving the barrier island of Grand Isle, south of New Orleans.

The storm had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph Thursday morning and it was centered about 25 miles southeast of Cabo Corrientes.

At least five deaths have been blamed on the storm in the Southeastern U.S. and one in Puerto Rico.

At 11 a.m. EDT Thursday, Dorian was centered about 50 miles southeast of Charleston, moving north at 8 mph.

The hurricane is about 100 miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida.

Major airlines began allowing travelers to change their reservations without a fee.

Several hundred customers were without power across Puerto Rico, said Ángel Figueroa, president of a union that represents power workers.

The money came from FEMA's operational account.