text: hurricane ida ( 2009 ) hurricane ida was the strongest landfalling tropical cyclone during the 2009 atlantic hurricane season , crossing the coastline of nicaragua with winds of 80 mph ( 130 km / h ) . the remnants of the storm became a powerful nor 'easter that caused widespread damage along coastal areas of the mid - atlantic states . hurricane ida formed on november 4 in the southwestern caribbean sea , and within 24 hours struck the nicaragua coast with winds of 80 mph ( 130 km / h ) . it weakened significantly over land , although it restrengthened in the yucatan channel to peak winds of 105 mph ( 165 km / h ) . hurricane ida weakened and became an extratropical cyclone in the northern gulf of mexico before spreading across the southeastern united states . the remnants of ida contributed to the formation of a nor 'easter that significantly affected the eastern coast of the united states . numerous watches and warnings were issued during the hurricane 's existence . areas from panama to maine were affected by either the storm or the nor 'easter low . in nicaragua , nearly 3 , 000 people evacuated coastal areas ahead of the storm . more extensive evacuations in mexico relocated over 100 , 000 residents and tourists . in the united states , several counties in louisiana , alabama and florida declared a state of emergency because of fear of significant damage from the storm . officials issued voluntary evacuations and most schools and non - emergency offices in the region closed . in central america , ida brought heavy rainfall to parts of costa rica , nicaragua and honduras . several people were reported missing in nicaragua , however post - storm reports denied these claims . thousands of buildings collapsed or sustained damage and roughly 40 , 000 people were left homeless . damages from ida in nicaragua amounted to at least 46 million córdoba ( $ 2 . 12 million us $ ) . aside from heavy rainfall in mexico and cuba , little impact from ida was reported in either country . in the united states , the remnants caused substantial damage , mainly in the mid - atlantic states . one person was killed by ida after drowning in rough seas , while six others lost their lives in various incidents related to the nor 'easter . widespread heavy rainfall led to numerous reports of flash flooding in areas from mississippi to maine . overall , the two systems caused nearly $ 300 million in damage throughout the country . meteorological history hurricane ida originated from a weak tropical wave that reached the western caribbean sea on november 1 , 2009 . by november 2 , the system spawned an area of low pressure north of panama which moved very little over the following days . the low became increasingly organized within a favorable environment that allowed deep convection to develop . by november 4 , the low had become sufficiently organized for the national hurricane center ( nhc ) to classify it as tropical depression eleven . at this time , the depression was situated just southwest of san andrés island . convective banding features became increasingly defined throughout the day and six hours after becoming a depression , the system intensified into tropical storm ida . light wind shear allowed ida to quickly intensify as it slowly tracked towards the nicaraguan coastline . late on november 4 , microwave satellite imagery depicted an eye - like featured forming within the storm . the storm tracked west - northwestward in response to a weak ridge over the north - central caribbean sea and a weak trough over the southwestern gulf of mexico ; these features were also responsible for ida 's slow forward motion . early on november 5 , the storm intensified into a category 1 hurricane on the saffir – simpson hurricane scale as it passed near the corn islands . at approximately 1117 utc , the center of ida made landfall near rio grande , nicaragua , with winds of 80 mph ( 130 km / h ) . after the hurricane moved inland , the high mountains of nicaragua caused the convection associated with the hurricane to diminish , resulting in rapid weakening . roughly 18 hours after landfall , ida weakened to a tropical depression as it turned northward over honduras . late on november 6 , ida re - emerged over water , entering the northwestern caribbean sea . upon moving back over water , the storm quickly began to redevelop , with convection increasing around the center of circulation . early on november 7 , ida restrengthened into a tropical storm as it tracked just west of due north . very warm sea surface temperatures ahead of the system would have allowed for substantial intensification ; however , wind shear over the area quickly increased , resulting in modest strengthening . later that day , the storm turned northwestward in response to a strong trough over mexico and a mid - level ridge extending from the southeast united states to hispaniola . as ida neared the yucatan channel , an eye redeveloped and the storm quickly intensified into a hurricane . by the morning of november 8 , the storm had attained category 2 status with winds of 100 mph ( 155 km / h ) . late on november 8 , ida attained its peak intensity with winds of 105 mph ( 160 km / h ) and a barometric pressure of 975 mbar ( hpa ; 28 . 79 inhg ) . shortly thereafter , increasing wind shear and forward speed caused the storm to rapidly weaken to a tropical storm . only a small area of convection remained near the center by the morning of november 9 . despite the strong shear , the storm quickly re - organized , attaining hurricane status for a third time during the afternoon . based on readings from a nearby oil platform and reconnaissance data , it was determined that ida attained its secondary peak intensity near the southeast coast of louisiana with winds of 85 mph ( 140 km / h ) . however , this intensification was short - lived as a combination of increasing wind shear and decreasing sea - surface temperatures induced weakening to a tropical storm within three hours . by the morning of november 10 , all of ida 's convection appeared displaced to the northeast and the forward motion of the storm slowed substantially . additionally , the storm had begun to undergo an extratropical transition near the united states gulf coast . shortly before making landfall near dauphin island , alabama , the storm completed its extratropical transition . ida crossed mobile bay shortly thereafter and maximum winds decreased below gale - force . after slowly tracking eastward for several hours , the surface circulation of ida dissipated over the florida panhandle . however , energy from the storm led to the formation of a new low off the coast of north carolina . this new low quickly intensified and became a powerful nor 'easter that caused substantial damage throughout the mid - atlantic states . by november 12 , the system attained a minimum pressure of 992 mbar ( hpa ; 29 . 29 inhg ) along with winds of 65 mph ( 100 km / h ) . the extratropical low weakened the following day and moved out to sea after stalling along the north carolina coastline . the remnants of the cyclone persisted through november 17 , by which time it had moved over atlantic canada . preparations central america shortly after being designated as tropical storm ida on november 4 , the government of nicaragua issued a tropical storm warning for the entire coastline of nicaragua , and the government of columbia also issued a warning for the nearby islands of san andrés and providencia . later that day , a hurricane watch was declared for areas between bluefields and the nicaragua – honduras border . as ida moved closer to land , the tropical storm warning for san andrés and providencia was discontinued . several hours later , the tropical storm warning and hurricane watch were modified to cover areas south of the nicaragua – honduras border to puerto cabezas and a hurricane warning was issued for areas south of puerto cabezas to bluefields . after ida made landfall in nicaragua , all hurricane advisories were discontinued and replaced by a tropical storm warning . shortly thereafter , a tropical storm watch was declared for areas along the honduran coastline between limón and the nicaragua – honduras border . however , all watches and warnings were discontinued once ida weakened to a tropical depression on november 6 . throughout nicaragua , officials evacuated roughly 3 , 000 people from areas prone to flash floods and landslides , as rainfall in excess of 20 in ( 510 mm ) was expected to fall . about 1 , 100 of the evacuees were from corn island and little corn island where their homes were not expected to hold up to hurricane - force winds . in bluefields , roughly 1 , 100 people were evacuated to shelters . authorities began stockpiling supplies such as food , blankets and water that could supply 20 , 000 people after the storm . upon the formation of ida , officials in costa rica placed most northern regions under a yellow alert . personnel from the costa rican red cross were also placed on standby . in el salvador , officials raised the disaster alert level to green , the lowest stage of alert , on november 5 . as ida neared the coastline of nicaragua , officials in honduras warned residents of the likelihood of heavy rainfall from the storm . in response to this , the country 's disaster alert level was raised to yellow . northern caribbean on november 7 , tropical depression ida re - entered the caribbean sea and restrengthened into a tropical storm , prompting the nhc to issue a tropical storm watch for areas between san felipe , yucatán and punta allen in mexico as well as in pinar del río province , cuba . several hours later , the watches were upgraded to warnings and a new tropical storm warning was declared for grand cayman . a tropical storm watch was also issued for isla de la juventud and a hurricane watch for areas between tulum and cabo catoche , mexico . early on november 8 , the tropical storm warning and hurricane watch for mexico were modified to include areas from punta allen to playa del carmen and tulum to playa del carmen respectively . a hurricane warning was also declared for areas between playa del carmen and cabo catoche . later that day , the tropical storm warning for grand cayman was discontinued as ida moved away from the island . early on november 9 , all watches and warnings for cuba and mexico were discontinued as ida moved into the gulf of mexico and towards the united states . in mexico , officials declared a yellow alert , moderate hazard , as hurricane ida neared the yucatan peninsula on november 9 . roughly 36 , 000 tourists and 1 , 500 residents were evacuated from coastal areas of quintana roo . the mexican navy was placed on standby to assist in relief efforts once the storm had passed . later that day , the alert was raised to red , the highest level , as hurricane - force winds and heavy rains threatened the region . a total of 95 shelters were opened in the state to house the evacuees . united states as hurricane ida moved over the yucatan channel on november 8 , the nhc issued a hurricane watch for areas between grand isle , louisiana and mexico beach , florida . as the storm moved closer to the states , a tropical storm warning was declared for areas between grand isle and pascagoula , mississippi , as well as areas between indian pass , florida , and the mouth of the aucilla river . the hurricane watch was also modified to encompass a smaller area , between grand isle and pascagoula . a hurricane warning was also issued from pascagoula to indian pass . during the afternoon of november 9 , all hurricane watches and warnings were discontinued and the tropical storm warning was modified to include areas between grand isle and the mouth of the aucilla river . as ida became extratropical , the nhc discontinued all watches and warnings on the storm on november 10 . due to the threat of large swells , several oil rigs along the texas coastline were evacuated as a precautionary measure . workers from the chevron corporation and the anadarko petroleum corporation were evacuated from offshore platforms while those working for conocophillips and exxonmobil remained on site . the louisiana offshore oil port was also shut down on november 9 as a result of ida 's passage . as a result of the decreased oil production , the price of oil rose more than $ 1 to $ 78 per barrel . among the rigs that were damaged was the transocean marianas which was drilling the macondo well . that vessel would be replaced on the macondo well by the deepwater horizon , which caused the deepwater horizon oil spill in 2010 . on november 8 , lafourche parish , louisiana president , charlotte randolph , declared a state of emergency for the parish as the storm approached the united states gulf coast . although no evacuations were issued , all schools and government offices were closed through november 10 . voluntary evacuations were issued for residents in plaquemines parish along coastal areas . the belle chasse auditorium was converted into a shelter to house evacuees for the duration of the storm . grand isle mayor david issued voluntary evacuation orders for residents in recreational vehicles and trailers on the island . nearly 1 , 400 families still living in temporary fema homes in louisiana , in the wake of hurricanes katrina and rita , were urged to stay at home . in baldwin county , alabama , a local state of emergency was declared on november 9 as ida neared landfall . voluntary evacuations were declared for residents living along coastal areas or in mobile homes . all government offices were closed until november 10 due to the storm . the baldwin county coliseum was converted into a shelter to house possible evacuees during the storm as well . in mississippi , officials advised residents to remain vigilant and discussed possible evacuations . residents living near pensacola beach , florida , and nearby perdido key were urged to evacuate . on november 8 , emergency officials declared a state of emergency in escambia county . the following day , walton county was also placed under a state of emergency ahead of hurricane ida 's arrival . voluntary evacuations were issued for residents in low - lying areas and all non - emergency offices were closed until november 10 . the freeport high school gymnasium was converted into a shelter to house evacuees . impact and aftermath nicaragua throughout nicaragua , rainfall produced by the storm was significantly less than anticipated according to satellite derived estimates . initial fears were that more than 15 in ( 380 mm ) of rain would fall ; however , most areas received less than 5 in ( 130 mm ) , especially further inland . a maximum of 9 . 1 in ( 230 mm ) fell in puerto cabezas while areas further inland received less than 8 in ( 200 mm ) . the most severe damage took place in and corn island , near where the storm made landfall . there , roughly 80 percent of the structures were destroyed and over 2 , 000 ha ( 4 , 900 acres ) of crops were lost . on corn island , 40 homes , 3 schools and a church were destroyed and the electrical and water grids were severely disrupted . roughly 6 , 000 people from the municipalities of sandy bay , , , laguna de perlas , el tortuguero and the mouth of the rio grande were evacuated to 54 shelters during the storm . officials stated that 42 people along the miskito coast were unaccounted for as they refused to evacuate before the storm . the day after ida passed through , officials began to assess the full extent of the hurricane 's damage . an estimated 40 , 000 people were left homeless throughout the country and one person was listed as missing . mayors of severely affected towns reported that there were numerous injuries , missing persons and extensive property damage . in nicaragua , there were no confirmed fatalities as a result of ida . damage from ida in nicaragua was estimated to be at least 46 million nicaraguan córdoba ( $ 2 . 12 million usd ) . a total of 1 , 334 people were injured by the storm throughout the country . final damage assessments from the nicaraguan government for mainland nicaragua were completed on november 12 . a government report said that 283 homes were destroyed and 1 , 899 others damaged ; 1 , 184 latrines were destroyed and 444 were damaged , and 476 wells were destroyed and 1 , 139 were damaged . shortly after the storm moved inland , 700 civil defense personnel were deployed to the affected region ; however , due to damaged roads and poor travel conditions , they struggled to reach isolated regions . the nicaraguan army supplied relief crews with four helicopters and two an - 2 aircraft for damage surveillance and search - and - rescue missions in the wake of ida . the government of nicaragua allocated roughly $ 4 . 4 million in relief funds for those affected by the storm . several agencies from the united nations provided residents affected by the storm with relief supplies and donated disaster funds to the country . the united nations population fund provided $ 49 , 000 in funds ; the world food programme deployed several rescue vehicles and logistics teams ; unicef also provided logistics assistance in the country . ocha provided $ 2 million in relief funds ; the government of sweden provided 400 , 000 swedish kronor ( $ 55 , 946 usd ) for sanitation and health supplies ; the netherlands red cross also donated 20 , 000 euros ( $ 27 , 226 usd ) for non - food items . elsewhere in central america in costa rica , the outer bands of ida brought torrential rainfall , triggering isolated landslides . one of these landslides damaged three homes , leading to officials evacuating five families . homes near los de cartago were flooded and the sewage system was damaged , resulting in overflow . in veraguas province , panama , severe flooding displaced more 400 people after 84 homes were inundated up to their roofs . a flooding disaster that killed 124 people in el salvador was initially attributed to hurricane ida , although the national hurricane center quickly affirmed that the event resulted from a separate tropical low - pressure system in the pacific . after weakening to a tropical storm , ida moved over honduras , where widespread heavy rains fell . a maximum rainfall of 7 . 1 in ( 180 mm ) was recorded in puerto lempira . these rains caused some rivers in the country to swell , but none overflowed its banks . in northern areas of honduras , minor flooding and fallen trees were reported . northern caribbean in cuba , the outer bands of ida produced widespread heavy rainfall across western areas of the country . a maximum rainfall amount of 12 . 5 in ( 320 mm ) fell in manuel lazo , while nearby areas received between 7 and 9 in ( 180 and 230 mm ) . strong winds , gusting up to 87 mph ( 140 km / h ) in localized areas , accompanied the storm during its passage . several rivers were swollen due to the rains , including the cuyaguateje river , which overflowed its banks and flooded nearby areas . in the yucatan peninsula , significantly less rain fell due to the asymmetrical structure of ida even though the peninsula was relatively close to the storm . isla holbox , recorded substantial flooding , with roughly 70 percent of the island underwater . however , only minor damage was reported . little to no beach erosion was sustained in coastal cities such as cancun ; however , over 50 , 000 tourists were evacuated from chetumal , quintana roo , during the storm . the outer bands of hurricane ida also affected grand cayman . moderate rainfall and gusty winds were reported across the island , and waves along the beach were estimated at 6 ft ( 1 . 8 m ) . united states ahead of ida 's arrival in the united states , a tight pressure gradient between the hurricane and a high pressure system over the southeastern states resulted in strong winds across southern florida . these winds , reaching 45 mph ( 75 km / h ) in gusts , caused moderate damage in parts of the state . roughly 3 , 000 people were left without power in miami - dade , broward and palm beach counties . several trees were reported to have been downed and some uprooted . one car was struck by a broken tree limb during the event . additionally , moderate beach erosion was reported in counties along the gulf coast . rainfall from the system impacted florida for two days , resulting in accumulations between 3 and 5 in ( 76 and 127 mm ) in parts of the panhandle . a maximum rainfall of 5 . 41 in ( 137 mm ) fell in pensacola . coastal and inland flooding resulted in numerous road closures and schools and non - governmental offices were closed on november 10 . water rise along the coast was estimated between 3 and 5 ft ( 0 . 91 and 1 . 52 m ) at the height of the storm . following the storm , a local state of emergency was declared in wakulla county . throughout florida , damage from the storm amounted to $ 265 , 000 . in alabama , where ida made landfall , heavy rains resulted in widespread flash flooding . a maximum of 9 . 83 in ( 250 mm ) of rain fell in opelika during the storm . several roads in coastal counties were closed after being covered by high water . heavy rains in central areas of the state also resulted in moderate flooding . in calhoun county , a three - block area of anniston was inundated by 2 . 5 ft ( 0 . 76 m ) of water . in addition to the storm 's heavy rains , waves up to 20 ft ( 6 . 1 m ) caused severe damage along coastal regions . a storm surge of 4 . 38 ft ( 1 . 34 m ) was recorded at bayou la batre . the gulf state park pier near gulf shores , recently re - opened after being destroyed by hurricane ivan in 2004 , was damaged . damage from beach erosion and coastal resorts amounted to roughly $ 9 million in the state . before making landfall in alabama , hurricane ida brushed southeastern louisiana , bringing light to moderate rains and increased surf to the state . offshore , one person drowned after attempting to assist a boat that let out a distress signal during the storm . the rough seas resulted in moderate to severe beach erosion that caused roughly 1 , 000 ft ( 300 m ) of levee to collapse . the levee collapse led to minor flooding and threatened three homes . the storm cut a new pass through elmer 's island to grand isle between 100 and 200 ft ( 30 and 61 m ) wide . a maximum sustained wind of 62 mph ( 99 km / h ) and a gust of 74 mph ( 119 km / h ) was recorded at the mouth of the mississippi river . the highest rainfall total was recorded in venice at 1 . 16 in ( 29 mm ) . although not solely caused by ida , high tides along the texas coastline led to a few road closures . minor effects from ida were also experienced in mississippi , georgia and tennessee . in mississippi , 4 . 13 in ( 105 mm ) of rain fell in waynesboro . some flooding was reported in areas near the alabama border while winds of up to 45 mph ( 75 km / h ) brought down trees . along the coast , the hurricane 's storm surge was estimated at between 3 and 3 . 5 ft ( 0 . 91 and 1 . 07 m ) . heavy rainfall from the storm affected much of georgia , with a large swath of 3 to 5 in ( 76 to 127 mm ) falling in northern parts of the state . a peak of 7 . 32 in ( 186 mm ) was recorded in . additionally , minor rains affected parts of eastern tennessee , totaling 4 . 11 in ( 104 mm ) on mount le conte . nor 'easter along the east coast of the united states , a nor 'easter involving the remnants of ida resulted in widespread damage along coastal areas . in north carolina strong winds downed several trees loosened in saturated soil . in rockingham county , one person was killed after being struck by a branch while driving . four homes were destroyed along the outer banks , and over 500 others were damaged , leaving at least $ 5 . 8 million in losses . widespread coastal damage and flooding took place in virginia , as rainfall exceeding 7 in ( 180 mm ) fell in many places and large waves battered beaches . in some areas , roads were closed multiple times due to flooding . minor damage was also reported as a few homes were inundated with up to 1 ft ( 0 . 30 m ) of water . some areas reported a storm surge comparable to that of hurricanes gloria in 1985 and isabel in 2003 . damage from the storm in virginia was estimated to be at least $ 38 . 8 million , of which $ 25 million was in norfolk alone . in new york , one person drowned after being caught in rough seas off rockaway beach . total beach losses in the state reached $ 8 . 2 million .