NU Online News Service, Nov. 9, 12:23 p.m. EST
Tropical Storm Ida's impact on energy company operations in the Gulf of Mexico should be light, catastrophe modeling firms said as U.S. coastal states braced for the impact.
Risk Management Solutions in Newark, Calif., said despite some offshore oil and gas platforms reporting the evacuation of personnel in advance of the storm, the strongest winds would remain to the east and "with the majority of the platforms located to the west, the impact is likely to be minimal."
AIR Worldwide in Boston said, regarding affects of the storm on the energy sector, that "significant loss of production is not expected, nor is significant physical damage to offshore assets."
Guy Carpenter in a CAT-i report said the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, the only terminal in the United States capable of handling the largest tankers, stopped unloading ships due to stormy seas.
Ida was downgraded to a tropical storm, having reached a Category 2 strength prior to entering the Gulf of Mexico.
At landfall along the Alabama/Florida border, RMS said it will likely remain at the tropical storm level. The modeling firm said the Alabama/Florida border region Ida appeared aimed at, according to most models, is a fairly sparsely populated area. Westward of that area lie the larger towns of Pascagoula, Miss. and Mobile, Ala.
Before landfall with the storm south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River the maximum sustained winds were clocked at 70 mph.
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist today declared a State of Emergency in all Florida counties due to the storm threat. Yesterday Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal did the same for his state.
The Insurance Information Institute said a tropical storm has not struck Louisiana since Hurricane Gustav, a Category 2 storm that made landfall in Cocodrie, La., on Sept. 1, 2008 causing insured losses of $2.15 billion.
The Florida Insurance Council said in advance of the storm many of its members suspended binding of property and auto coverage. Policy varies from company to company, but most insurers have limited this suspension to some or all of the Panhandle and continue to write in central and south Florida. Some companies continue with business as usual, the Council said.
RMS said because it was tracking over cooler sea surface temperatures approaching the U.S. Gulf Coast, the increasing wind shear was likely to weaken.
Ida on Thursday hit the lightly developed Corn Islands off the coast of Nicaragua, and residents there today were still dealing with its effects, according to AccuWeather. AIR Worldwide said 500 homes, mostly in poor repair were reported destroyed.
The AccuWeather forecast service said the storm cut power, which was still off in some areas, and ripped off roofs. Hundreds of people were evacuated in advance of the storm.
Guy Carpenter said Ida had triggered floods that forced more than 5,000 Nicaraguan residents into shelters.
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