1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites

US: Deadly tornado rips through New Orleans

March 23, 2022

A large tornado hit New Orleans overnight, killing one person and leaving thousands of residents without power. Officials are working to assess the damage from the storm.

https://p.dw.com/p/48tmB
Debris line streets in the Lower 9th Ward, Tuesday, March 22, 2022, in New Orleans, after strong storms moved through the area.
Thousands have been left without power in New Orleans in the wake of a deadly tornadoImage: Gerald Herbert/AP Photo/picture alliance

A large tornado battered the southern US city of New Orleans on Tuesday evening, killing one person and leaving several injured, according to local police. 

Authorities are assessing the damage in the worst-hit areas, including  Arabi, Gretna and Lacombe in St. Tammany parish, some 50 minutes from New Orleans, and the Lower Ninth Ward, a neighborhood in the city.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said the storm cleared the New Orleans area by 8 p.m. local time (0100 UTC). 

Power lines cut, buildings damaged

Local media reported houses with damaged roofs and neighborhoods with dangerous downed power lines. 

People assess damage at Lower Ninth Ward, a neighborhood in New Orleans
People assess damage at Lower Ninth Ward, a neighborhood New OrleansImage: Gerald Herbert/AP Photo/picture alliance

"We had five or six houses totally destroyed. There were people in the homes, so far everyone is accounted for," St. Bernard Parish President Guy McInnis told WDSU television station in New Orleans. 

Around 17,346 people had lost power in the state of Louisiana, home to New Orleans, according to the website PowerOutage. Images on social media showed streets of the city lined with debris. 

Tornado season begins 

A separate series of tornadoes ripped through Texas and Oklahoma earlier in the week. Tornadoes are not uncommon in this part of the US as spring begins, said Roger Erickson, a NWS meteorologist.

"This is the typical time of the year for these events to unfold. Spring-time is prime for severe weather," Erickson said. 

Much of southern Louisiana is still recovering from the damages wrought by Hurricane Ida, a Category 4 storm that hit the Gulf Coast state last August. 

New Orleans was also severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, which remains one of the largest and most powerful storms in US history.

rm/wmr (Reuters, AP)